Oktoberfest in Hampden

September 22, 2007 marked the first day of the Oktoberfest celebration in Munich (Munchen), Germany. The annual festival dates back to October 12, 1810 as part of a commemoration of the marriage between King Ludwig I and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The current festival area is named after the princess: Theresienwiese.

The festivities include massive amounts of beer consumption (all local producers) including a special Oktoberfest brew which is very dark and high in alcohol content and served in one-liter jugs called Maß.  Oktoberfest begins with a twelve gun salute followed by the Mayor of Munich yelling “O’zapft is” (”it’s tapped”) as he taps the first keg and pours himself a glass.  Oktoberfest continues for two weeks consisting of dancing, singing, eating, and of course drinking a lot of great German Bier.

Unfortunately most of us will not get to experience the 2007 Oktoberfest, at least not in Germany. An alternative is to check out the free beer tasting tomorrow at The Wine Source, in Hampden and find a few beers that you really like. Buy a few cases, head over to a friends house with some Weisswurst and Sauerkraut, and have your own Oktoberfest celebration!

The Wine Source Tasting: Saturday September 29, 1:30 - 5:30pm