Märzens are classic German beers characterized by a medium body and broad range of color. As the name implies, these beers were originally brewed in the month of March, and aged over the summer for drinking in the fall festival season. "Oktoberfest beers" are a subset of the style which range from golden to reddish brown. The flavor of both is dominated by a sweet maltiness, though there is a clean bitterness from hops. Malt character is typically light-toasted rather than strongly caramel. The aroma and flavor from malt is sometimes bread-like.

The North American style of this classic German beer is distinguished by a comparatively greater degree of character from hops, with some bitterness which is not aggressive or harsh.

Commercial examples include Spaten Ur-Märzen, Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest and Paulaner Oktoberfest. Other North American commercial examples include Staghorn Octoberfest, Summit Oktoberfest, Widmer Brothers Oktoberfest and Gordon Biersch Marzen. Based on the industry definition published by the Association of Brewers.

Beer styles | Beer and breweries in Germany

Märzen (Bier) | Märzen | Märzen