Autumn is in full force. If you live somewhere with noticeable seasons, this is abundantly clear. The red, yellow, orange, and brown leaves littering the ground will let you in on the fact that summer is firmly in the rearview mirror. The days are getting colder and the nights are getting longer. Lucky for you, there are myriad fall beers perfect for the cool evenings ahead.
In my experience as a beer writer, I’ve tried more beer styles than I’m comfortable talking about. I’ve learned that a great fall beer has a few attributes. It should be more malty, rich, flavorful, and often warming and featuring a higher alcohol content than its summery counterparts.
The best beer styles for fall
We’re not here to tell you to stop drinking pilsners, light lagers, and IPAs this season. You do you. It’s just that the chilly air of autumn calls for bolder beers. This includes Marzens, brown ales, amber ales, stouts, porters, and even pumpkin beers.
When fall began, and the weather was still summerlike, you probably reached for an amber ale, brown ale, or malty, rich lager. As the calendar turned to October, you’d be remiss if you didn’t sip on at least one (or more) flavorful, balanced Oktoberfest-style beer. Halloween meant spiced, indulgent pumpkin ales. As the weather finally turns chilly and crisp, the time is right for those fall porters and stouts (and even imperial porters and stouts).
Now that you’ve learned a little about the various fall beer styles, it’s time to take a deep dive into each (and a few more). We’ll learn about the flavor profiles and learn what each beer brings to the season. Keep scrolling to see all of the must-try fall beer styles.
Oktoberfest-style beer
There are few beer styles more synonymous with autumn than the Oktoberfest-style beer. While the term can be used for various styles, it’s most commonly associated with the Märzen style. Known for its balanced, bready, malty, sweet, crisp, refreshing flavor profile, it’s just as enjoyable on an unseasonably warm fall day as it is on a chilly fall or early winter night.
Pumpkin beer
Another style commonly associated with fall is the pumpkin beer. This is one for the pumpkin spice fans. If you get excited for pumpkin spice lattes at your local coffee shop, you’ll love the annual pumpkin beer releases. Like Oktoberfest-style beers, brewers can use the title for a variety of styles, including lagers, ales, IPAs, and more, but it’s most associated with stouts. On top of the flavors of the beer, the style is known for notes of ripe pumpkin, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and other fall spices.
Brown ale
Originating in the UK, the brown ale is known for its dark brown hue and balanced flavor profile featuring notes of toffee, chocolate, sweet malts, candied nuts, and a lightly bitter finish. If you’re grabbing an American version, you’re going to be treated to a higher alcohol level and likely a hoppier finish. All in all, it’s a great choice for fall because of its mix of caramel sweetness and hop bitterness.
Schwarzbier
If you’ve never tried a Schwarzbier, now is the time. A great choice for fall sipping, the Schwarzbier is a German style that originated in the 1500s. This dark lager is known for its rich, bold flavor profile featuring notes of roasted malts, coffee, chocolate, and a crisp, memorable finish. If you’re not ready for the heaviness of a stout or porter this fall, the schwarzbier is the perfect gateway brew.
Amber ale
As the name suggests, an amber ale is a golden hued ale known for its multi-layered flavor profile featuring a ton of caramel and bready malt up from followed by flavors like citrus peels, and floral, piney hops. The balance of toffee and biscuit-like malts and gently bitter hops makes for a great beer to bridge the gap between lighter fall beer and bolder, richer winter brews.
Porter
If you’re ready for a rich, indulgent, malty beer, but you’re not ready for a heady stout this fall, the porter is for you. This full-bodied, cold-weather beer was first brewed in the 1700s in England and gets its name from the blue color workers who initially drank it. Brewed with malted barley as well as malts like Chocolate and Crystal malts, it’s known to be sweeter and lighter than its stout counterpart. Other flavors include caramel, dark chocolate, vanilla, and toffee.
Bottom line
Fall is a great season to drink beer. In between your favorite lager, we suggest giving one of these beer styles a try. We believe you’ll be so happy with your choice that you’ll continue to drink it (and some of the styles) well into the winter and beyond. You can’t go wrong with any of the above styles.
