September is one of the strangest months of the year. School and football are back and it feels like it should be fall already but the weather can often be jarringly warm. This means we have one flip-flopped foot still planted in summer and the other firmly planted in everything autumn (Oktoberfest, pumpkin spice, and light sweaters). This cognitive dissonance affects the beer world, too. You might feel like something super light but pumpkin ales, Vienna lagers, amber ales, wet hop IPAs, harvest ales, and darker beers are definitely entering the picture.
All in all, it’s a great month to be a beer drinker. Though, in 2022, most months are great months to be a beer drinker.
Being spoiled with options isn’t always easy, though. Do you want to drink every craft Oktoberfest-style beer available? Delve into the scary, sometimes overly sweet world of pumpkin beers? Or do you want to stick with summery IPAs, lagers, and pale ales for one more month?
Lucky for you, we’re here to help you on your September beer journey. We’ve compiled a list of ten of our favorite beers to track down this September. Keep reading to see them all.
Firestone Walker Oaktoberfest
ABV: 5.2%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This annual release is Firestone Walker’s spin on the classic Oktoberfest beer. The 2022 edition was lagered in oak barrels from one of the most popular wineries in California’s Napa Valley. Brewed with Weyermann Vienna malt, Weyermann pilsner malt, noble German hops, and Weihenstephan lager yeast. Definitely one to look forward to this month.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is simple, but inviting with aromas of oaky wood, fruit esters, and caramel malts. The palate follows suit with hints of herbal, earthy, floral hops paired with biscuit-like, caramel malts, and more woody oak. The finish has the expected sweetness of an Oktoberfest beer with very little bitterness.
Bottom Line:
If you’re a fan of fresh takes on Oktoberfest-style beers, and you have tried other iterations of this beer, now’s your chance. The lagering in oak gives it a unique, memorable flavor.
Sierra Nevada Liquid Hoppiness
ABV: 7%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Sierra Nevada is known for its limited-edition, seasonal beers. This is especially true with its IPAs. That’s why we were so stoked to try its newest release, Liquid Hoppiness. This juicy, piney IPA is brewed with 2-row pale and Munich malts as well as oats and wheat. It gets its fruity, resinous flavor from the addition of Azacca, Cascade, Centennial, and Sultana hops.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is all tangerine, grapefruit, and pineapple, with a nice hint of caramel malts to tie everything together. The palate is juicy and ripe with notes of grapefruit, orange zest, lemon, coconut, fresh-cut grass, and herbal, spicy hops. The finish is slightly bitter and juicy.
Bottom Line:
This juicy IPA is bursting with tropical and citrus flavors. It’s a fruity, hoppy way to say goodbye to summer 2022.
Exhibit ‘A’ Brewing Co. CAKE!
ABV: 6%
Average Price: $14 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
Sometimes we’re a bit wary of trying new pumpkin-centric beers because there are a lot of overly sweet, generic tasting beers on the market. Exhibit ‘A’ CAKE! Is something different. Brewed with cinnamon, vanilla, coffee, and pumpkin spice coffee cake, this 6% ABV autumn ale is as close to fall in a can as you can get and it’s not too sweet — a huge plus.
Tasting Notes:
One whiff of this beer and you know it’s a fall pumpkin spiced beer. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. On top of pumpkin spice, there are aromas of yellow cake, coffee, vanilla, and maybe some cinnamon. The palate continues this trend with more vanilla, loads of pumpkin, and a healthy dose of freshly brewed coffee.
Bottom Line:
If the goal was to create a beer that emulated the taste of eating a piece of pumpkin cake with a cup of freshly brewed coffee, this beer definitely did that, An interesting, fresh take on the pumpkin beer style.
Wild Leap Coast West ‘22
ABV: 10%
Average Price: $9.50 for a four-pack
The Beer:
Every fall, Wild Leap releases a new Coast West. The 2022 version is a 10% ABV double IPA that’s brewed with frozen fresh Cryo hops. The result is a piney, resinous, slightly bitter homage to a West Coast classic you’ll drink now until the end of fall.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you’ll find classic West Coast IPA aromas like grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, grass, and resinous pine. Sipping it reveals even more. Balanced notes of caramel-like malts, ripe grapefruit, candied pineapple, and dank, floral, slightly spicy hops are prevalent. The finish is dry, slightly bitter, and leaves you wanting more.
Bottom Line:
If you’re anything like us, you continue drinking piney IPAs all year long, especially in September. At 10% ABV, this one is filled with flavor and has enough alcohol content to give you a nice warming feeling on an unseasonably cool September night.
Left Hand Oktoberfest Marzen
ABV: 6.6%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
No September beer list is complete without a few annual release Oktoberfest beers. One of our favorites is this Märzen lager from the folks at Left Hand Brewing. It’s malty and loaded with biscuit-like malts but gets a vibrant kick from the use of Noble hops.
Tasting Notes:
Classic aromas of freshly baked bread, sweet grains, and fresh, floral, spicy hops greet your nose before your first sip. This is followed by even more cereal grains, caramel malts, and floral, herbal hops on the palate. When it comes to craft Oktoberfest-style beers, this one is difficult to beat.
Bottom Line:
This Oktoberfest-style beer is a perfect balance of floral Noble hops, grains, and sweet, caramel-like malts. It’s complex, yet easy to drink and perfect for the last days of summer.
Troegs Hop Cyclone
ABV: 9%
Average Price: $15.50 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
You might think hazy IPAs are only for the middle of summer. But every fall, Troegs drops Hop Cyclone, a hazy, juicy, can’t-miss seasonal beer brewed with Pilsner malt, Vienna malt, and wheat. It gets its hoppy flavor from Citra, Sabro, Simcoe, and Sultana hops.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a combination of pineapple, grapefruit, and other tropical fruit flavors paired with dank, resinous, piney, slightly spicy hops. Drinking it reveals more ripe pineapple, tangerine, citrus zest, peach, and dank pine. The finish is resinous and slightly bitter.
Bottom Line:
This is a nice summer send-off for hopheads. It’s loaded with floral, spicy, dank hop flavor but there’s enough tropical fruit flavor to appeal to those who are less obsessed with hops.
Sycamore Peak Farm IPA
ABV: 7.2%
Average Price: $7.99 for a 16-ounce can
The Beer:
Sycamore Brewing released its Peak Farm IPA to celebrate National IPA Day in August. But, since the weather is still summery, it’s still an appropriate beer to bridge the gap between summer and fall. This 7.2% ABV IPA is known for its mix of bright citrus and spicy, floral, earthy hops.
Tasting Notes:
Floral hops, citrus rind, and bready, caramel malts are dominant on the nose. The palate is loaded with flavors of biscuit-like malts, sweet caramel, earthy, herbal, slightly bitter, piney hops, and citrus zest. There’s a nice balance between malts and hops that feels like a good fit for September.
Bottom Line:
If there ever was an IPA to bridge the gap between summer and fall, this would be it. It has the floral, earthy, spicy hops summer drinkers crave, but it’s paired well with the richer, caramel malts of fall drinking.
Jack’s Abby Copper Legend
ABV: 5.7%
Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
Every late summer, we eagerly await the return of Copper Legend. This aptly named Oktoberfest-style beer is known for its sweet, malty, refreshing flavor. Noble hops give it an added zing that leaves you craving more.
Tasting Notes:
Complex aromas of toasted malts, freshly baked bread, and gentle, nutty sweetness greet your nose. The palate is filled with more bready malts, butterscotch, sweet grains, and lightly spicy, floral hops. The finish is sweet and dry with very little bitterness.
Bottom Line:
If there ever was a crushable fall Oktoberfest-style beer, this would be it. It’s caramel malt forward, with just a hint of piney hops. Sweet, easy to drink, and well-suited for September.
Call To Arms Peach Aggro Crag IPA
ABV: 8.2%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
If you think it’s too late in the summer to enjoy something peach flavored, you’re completely wrong. With the last gasp of summer, we want nothing more than to enjoy this peach-filled, 8.2% ABV double IPA. It’s fruity, juicy, piney, and perfect for the end of the summer.
Tasting Notes:
Just like the fake Nickelodeon mountain it’s named for, this beer packs massive energy. First, you’re met with bold, ripe peaches, other tropical fruit flavors, and bold, piney, slightly spicy hops. The palate continues this trend with hints of grapefruit, citrus zest, and more pine. But it’s the ripe peach flavor that really dominates and shines throughout.
Bottom Line:
Peaches are often thought of as a summer fruit. Why not wind down the summer by enjoying a beer that not only features the summery fruit but makes it the centerpiece?
Evil Genius Is Butter A Carb?
ABV: 5.5%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
This beer might seem like a gimmick, but it’s surprisingly good. This collaboration between Evil Genius and Auntie Anne’s pretzels brings beer and pretzels together in one delicious can. That’s right, this Oktoberfest-style beer with brewed with hops, malts, and a healthy dose of soft pretzels.
Tasting Notes:
Classic bready malts, caramel, and noble hops are the first aromas you notice. This is followed by buttery toffee and slight fall spices. Sipping it reveals an even more exciting flavor profile featuring freshly baked bread, salted caramel, and floral, spicy hops. It’s like a classic Oktoberfest-style beer slightly turned on its head.
Bottom Line:
Gimmicks aside, this is a surprisingly good Marzen-style beer. It’s malty, sweet, and memorable and it appears the addition of pretzels only positively adds to the flavor.