Unsure of which beer to brew.

[brew703]

I bought the grains for a Munich Helles. Never had one but wanted to try something different than the NE IPA's and APA's I've been brewing.

The wife and I went have a few drinks at a local Mexican restaurant and they have a few different Octoberfest Ales. So I tried the Sierra Nevada Octoberfest. They also had Spaten and a few others.

I must say I didn't like it. Could not finish the entire bottle and my wife hated it. Not sure what I expected but the taste just wasn't good. It was a fresh beer, bottled end of August.

I've never tried a Helles either so now I am not sure what to brew. I would like something smooth and malty, not too hoppy & something my wife would drink. Keep in mind she is an Ultra drinker but she does at least try the beers I brew. She does like Braufessor's Blonde I brewed as well as a Bohemian Pils I brewed early on.

With that said, can the experienced beer gods help and point me in the right direction? I don't want anything that remotely resembles the SN Octoberfest I tried.

This is the Helles I planned on brewing, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=542886.

I could also go with this one, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=576012

 

[Barley_Bob]

She's an Ultra drinker... but are there any craft brews she does like? What non-IPAs and APAs do you like?

I don't think you're plan to do a Helles was a bad one at all. It sounds like it fits the bill for what you're trying to accomplish. That pilsner though, has 5oz of hops and 36 IBUs. I don't think that's going to be a winner for her!

I really struggle to make beers my wife likes. In the end, I've just made some beers other than IPAs and APAs that I love and she hates.

 

[55x11]

I bought the grains for a Munich Helles. Never had one but wanted to try something different than the NE IPA's and APA's I've been brewing.

The wife and I went have a few drinks at a local Mexican restaurant and they have a few different Octoberfest Ales. So I tried the Sierra Nevada Octoberfest. They also had Spaten and a few others.

I must say I didn't like it. Could not finish the entire bottle and my wife hated it. Not sure what I expected but the taste just wasn't good. It was a fresh beer, bottled end of August.

I've never tried a Helles either so now I am not sure what to brew. I would like something smooth and malty, not too hoppy & something my wife would drink. Keep in mind she is an Ultra drinker but she does at least try the beers I brew. She does like Braufessor's Blonde I brewed as well as a Bohemian Pils I brewed early on.

With that said, can the experienced beer gods help and point me in the right direction? I don't want anything that remotely resembles the SN Octoberfest I tried.

This is the Helles I planned on brewing, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=542886.

I could also go with this one, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=576012

Helles in general (if brewed to style) is a lot less malty, less ABV, less hoppy, less IBU, much lighter in color than Marzen/Oktoberfest.

Its not exactly apples and oranges but, well, maybe it's a bit like apples and oranges. Both are fruit and round. Otherwise different.

 

[GHBWNY]

I brewed and served many styles to my beer-drinking family, the majority of whom are females, before I brewed and served my first hefe. It was an instant hit and now the go-to quaff they keep coming back for. It's a simple DME recipe, but has a great bready, malty, low-hop flavor.

 

[trav77]

I've brewed Gavin's Helle's recipe (and others like it). Just go for it. My wife doesn't drink beer but enjoyed that one. It won't have the toasty malt flavour that an O-Fest has and it will be lower in IBU and overall hop presence. Just a nice clean bready pils malt flavour. Very nice.

 

[brew703]

Since I already have the grains I'll go ahead and brew the helles.. Just don't want it to turn out the SN Octoberfest I tried.
For those who drink the Octoberfest style, do all commercial brands taste similar? I was going to try SPaten but ratebeer actually rated the SN one higher.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Your brewin the Helles but if your wife if looking for malty with no hop flavor this would be a good choice.Not to heavy easy drinker 5 %'er .My wife doesn't like any of my IPAs because of the hops but really likes this one.Worth a shot.Ive made it with 1084 and S04 and prefer the S04.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...nWsRzgyyRQGesONDg&sig2=JCvIu2UKOBdq1nDWlNUabw