History of Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest is the largest folk festival in the world. The first-ever Oktoberfest was held on October 12th, 1810, in honor of the marriage between Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. This first annual festival lasted 5 days and ended with a horse race. In the following years, the townspeople of Munich, Germany conducted the celebration of Oktoberfest on a much grander scale.
In 1910, Oktoberfest celebrated its 100th anniversary in the only way the people of Munich knew how; by consuming about 120,000 liters of beer, which was a record at that time. Three years later the Braurosl was built! Braurosl is the largest tent with upwards f 8,400 seats after the latest renovation.
Being a 210-year-old festival, Oktoberfest did face some troubling times. One is the festival in complete shut down during the entirety of World War 2. Secondly, the horrific events of the Oktoberfest bombing on September 26th, 1980. This catastrophic event happened at the entrance of the festival that left hundreds of people injured.
For their 200th anniversary in 2010, Oktoberfest went back to their roots for the opening ceremony by conducting a horse race to kick things off, which replicated the horse race that closed out the festival back in 1910.
What is Oktoberfest like Today?
Approximately over six million visitors travel to Germany to celebrate this two-week festival. Visitors from across the world come to Oktoberfest so they can eat traditional food, listen to traditional music, wear traditional Bavarian garb, and mainly drink the famous Oktoberfest Marzen beer. Studies have shown that the total consumption of beer during the two-week festival is upwards of 2 million gallons.
Oktoberfest is celebrated over a sixteen-day period that lasts until the first Sunday in October. By moving the festivities from October to September allows festival-goers to enjoy better weather conditions. Traditions of Oktoberfest have made their way all over the globe for everyone far and wide to enjoy. Yes, the term “Oktoberfest” is plastered on some of your favorite beers, but the meaning behind the word is for all to enjoy fall festivities with a delicious beer in hand.
Quesada Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest doesn’t only inspire the beer industry, but also the cigar industry as well. Specifically, the delicious Quesada Oktoberfest. The Quesada Oktoberfest is a seasonal, limited edition smoke that’s crafted by legendary cigar master Manuel Quesada. In 2019, Quesada revised some of their older Oktoberfest lines and released all five lines under the specific brand that all pays homage to Oktoberfest. The Bavarian, Das Boot, Kugel, Uber, and Triple Bock House are the names of the cigars under the Oktoberfest line for Quesada.
Four of the Quesada Oktoberfest lines are the rare Dominican puro, while the fifth line is a Nicaraguan puro. Some flavor notes you’ll detect in these smokes are cedar, chocolate, pepper, spice, coffee, and a hint of dried fruit. With dark and oily wrappers, you’ll taste robust, earthy, and rich flavors. Any of these cigars under the Quesada Oktoberfest line will pair perfectly with your favorite Oktoberfest beer.
Nick’s Oktoberfest Smoke and Beverage Pairing
On this week’s podcast, both Nick and Greg did an Oktoberfest pairing. They each selected a cigar that appeared in this week’s Top 5 list and enjoyed an Oktoberfest beer alongside the cigar. Nick smoked the Alec Bradley Coyol in the Petite Lancero size while drinking Two Roads Brewing version of their own Oktoberfest beer that’s spelled “Ok2berfest”.
The Coyol is cloaked in a Honduran wrapper, with binder and filler tobaccos from Honduras and Nicaragua. Flavor notes you’ll get while smoking the Coyol are earth, black coffee, leather, and nuts. These flavor notes complement the Ok2berfest perfectly, due to the crisp, traditional German hops Two Roads Brewing provides. Modeled after the vintage “Marzenbier” style, the Ok2berfest actually makes its way to Germany and is served at the festival every year.
Greg’s Oktoberfest Smoke and Beverage Pairing
Greg’s pairing choice was just as tasty as Nick’s. He enjoyed smoking the new Four Kicks Mule Kick 2020 Limited Edition while drinking Blue Point Brewer’s Oktoberfest creation! The Mule Kick 2020 LE is a Nicaraguan Puro, which is rare for Jon Huber of Crowned Heads to create. The flavor notes you’ll taste while smoking the Mule Kick 2020 LE are cedar, citrus, spice, and nuts.
Those flavorful notes of the Mule Kick 2020 Le will pair nicely with this refreshing drink from Blue Point Brewing. Blue Point Oktoberfest was originally brewed to celebrate Oktoberfest all those years ago. Oktoberfest by Blue Point is the go-to selection for its consumers due to the fact that the brewery itself is located on the East Coast where the Autumn season is long-lasting. With the first week of October in the books, we hope you get to enjoy the crisp weather outside all while conducting a beer and cigar pairing of your choice.
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