BOSTON — Craft beer fans will break out their lederhosen and dirndl, as Samuel Adams’ highly anticipated OctoberFest beer is back on shelves for the fall beer season. With the return of the beloved, malty märzen-style lager comes the return of something else that not even a paleo diet, flipping tractor tires, or goat yoga can prepare drinkers for: the ultimate “everyman” athletic competition, OctoberFest Stein Hoisting.
Coming to beer halls, bars, tailgates and Oktoberfest tents across the country, the Sam Adams Stein Hoisting Competitions bring together sport and beer in a way that only OctoberFest can. Feats of strength and agility are a common sight at the home of Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany – and since 2011 Sam Adams has been bringing this time-honored test of strength to the U.S., with over 200,000 steins hoisted across the country.
This year, Samuel Adams has partnered with Sports Illustrated on the quest to find the top Stein Hoisters in America. Competitors across the country must hold a one-liter stein of OctoberFest straight out in front without bending their elbow or spilling any of the beer. The top five male and five female Stein Hoisters across the nation will each win a trip for two to compete in the finals in Boston on October 27. This final hoist will determine the winners — one male and one female — who will reign as “America’s Stein Hoisters of the Year” and win the Grand Prize of a trip for two to Sports Illustrated’s annual Sportsperson of the Year Gala, where they will rub elbows (and tired arms) with fellow athletes and celebrities.
In addition to local events across the country, Sam Adams is bringing Stein Hoisting to special popup celebrations in five cities this fall – where craft beer and music fans alike can celebrate everyone’s favorite season with delicious beer, live music, lawn games and even a hop slide. Festival goers that think they have what it takes can join walk-up competitions, or kick back and enjoy brews and food while listening to artists such as The Strumbellas, The Wallflowers, 311 and Mighty Mighty Bosstones.
Samuel Adams OctoberFest Celebrations
Dates, locations and featured artists for regional OctoberFest experiences are as follows. For tickets visit SamOfest.com
Cleveland: September 29-30
Location: Voinovich Bicentennial Park
Featured Artists: The Strumbellas with Corey Harper (Friday), The Kongos with City of the Sun (Saturday)
Denver: October 7
Location: Larimer St. Between 14th and 15th
Featured Artists: George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, G. Love & Special Sauce, Corey Harper
Chicago: October 14
Location: Petrillo Music Shell
Featured Artists: 311, Rebelution, Pepper, City of the Sun
New York City: October 21
Location: Pier 16 – Seaport District
Featured Artists: The Wallflowers, City of the Sun
Boston: October 27
Location: World Trade Center Concourse (Boulevard of Flags)
Featured Artists: Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Kongos, City of the Sun
For additional information on local competitions and festivals, visit http://www.samueladams.com/events-and-promotions and for top stein hoisting times across the country visit http://www.samueladams.com/steinhoisting.
About Samuel Adams OctoberFest
With its classic roasted malt character and sweet notes of caramel and toffee, OctoberFest is now among the brewery’s most award-winning, beloved and sought-after beers. “Drinkers have been looking forward to the fall season every year since we first brewed OctoberFest in 1989,” said Jim Koch, founder and brewer of Sam Adams. “With this beer we honor the more than 200-year tradition of Oktoberfest in Munich and celebrate the turning of the seasons with our deep, rich lager and time-honored stein hoisting competitions.”
Availability
Samuel Adams OctoberFest is available nationwide through October in six-packs for a suggested retail price of $7.99 to $9.99; 12-packs of bottles and Sam Cans for a suggested retail price of $14.99 to $17.99; 16oz single cans for a suggested retail price of $1.99 to $2.49, and on draft.
OctoberFest is also available in the Fall Variety 12-pack, which includes Boston Lager, 20 Pounds of Pumpkin, Maple Red, Black Lager, and new brew Honey Rye Pale Ale. The Fall Variety 12-pack is available for a suggested retail price of $14.99 to $17.99, and 24-pack for a suggested retail price of $22.99 to $24.99. OctoberFest is also available in the Fall Can Variety Pack, which includes Bohemian Pilsner and new can-pack exclusive brew Dunkelweizen. The Fall Can Variety 12-pack is available for a suggested retail price of $14.99 to $17.99, and 24-pack for a suggested retail price of $22.99 to $24.99. Price for each package varies by market. To find where Samuel Adams OctoberFest and other brews are sold near you, visit: http://www.samueladams.com/find-a-sam.
About Samuel Adams and The Boston Beer Company
The Boston Beer Company began in 1984 with a generations-old family recipe that Founder and Brewer Jim Koch uncovered in his father’s attic. Inspired and unafraid to challenge conventional thinking about beer, Jim brought the recipe to life in his kitchen. Pleased with the results of his work, Jim decided to sample his beer with bars in Boston in the hopes that drinkers would appreciate the complex, full-flavored beer he brewed fresh in America. That beer was aptly named Samuel Adams Boston Lager, in recognition of one of our nation’s great founding fathers, a man of independent mind and spirit. Little did Jim know at the time, Samuel Adams Boston Lager would soon become a catalyst of the American craft beer revolution.
Today, The Boston Beer Company brews more than 60 styles of beer. It relentlessly pursues the development of new styles and the perfection of classic beers by searching the world for the finest ingredients. Using the traditional four vessel brewing process, the Company often takes extra steps like dry-hopping, barrel-aging and a secondary fermentation known as krausening. The Company has also pioneered another revolution, the ‘extreme beer’ movement, where it seeks to challenge drinker’s perceptions of what beer can be. The Boston Beer Company has been committed to elevating the image of American craft beer by entering festivals and competitions around the globe, and is one of world’s most awarded breweries at international beer competitions. As an independent company, brewing quality beer remains its primary focus. Although Samuel Adams beer is America’s leading craft beer, it accounts for only one percent of the U.S. beer market. The Boston Beer Company will continue its independently-minded quest to brew great beer and to advocate for the growth of craft beer across America.