The Oktoberfest Party Beer List: What US Stores Stock, and What to Pour It In

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Buying beer for an Oktoberfest party sounds simple until you are standing in front of a shelf that says “Oktoberfest” on six different labels and only one of them is actually from Munich. This page sorts out who really imports what, what formats you will find, and what to pour it into, as one piece of the full Oktoberfest party plan. I am not the beer drinker in this story, which if anything makes me a more patient reader of import pages than most.

The Munich breweries, and who actually imports them

Of Munich’s six official Oktoberfest breweries, three have a US importer that states the relationship on its own site in plain language. Paulaner USA, based in White Plains, NY, describes itself as representing “a collection of top-quality beers imported to the states,” naming Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr and Tsingtao in its portfolio; its own page does not mention Franziskaner or Spaten at all¹.

Hofbräu München’s beer comes through Hofbräuhaus of America, LLC, based in Las Vegas, whose product page for the seasonal beer calls it “the actual beer from the traditional Oktoberfest in Munich”².

The rest of the picture is thinner than most beer blogs make it sound. Weihenstephaner, a Bavarian state brewery rather than one of Munich’s official six, is imported by Total Beverage Solution of Mount Pleasant, SC, which has carried the brand since 2006 by its own account, though its page does not spell out exclusivity or list formats⁶.

Ayinger’s US presence appears to run through Merchant du Vin, whose site features Ayinger among “The Breweries” it imports, but the page never states the relationship in a sentence the way Paulaner USA does, so treat it as likely rather than confirmed⁷.

Schneider Weisse turns up on Global Beer Network’s own brewery list, alongside product photos of its Eisbock, Aventinus, Festbier and Hefeweiss⁸. For Spaten, Franziskaner and Löwenbräu, no dedicated US-importer storefront comparable to Paulaner USA’s turned up on a fetched page in this research, so this page does not name one.

Source: each brewery’s or importer’s own site, listed under Sources below.

Formats you will actually find

Hofbräu’s Oktoberfestbier is the one format list this research could confirm in full: 11.2-ounce bottles, 16.9-ounce cans, 5-liter mini-kegs and draft, sold seasonally from July through October at 6.3 percent ABV, described by the importer as having a “full-bodied, dry and fresh fruity hops flavor”¹.

Franziskaner Hefe-Weissbier shows up at BevMo in a 6-pack of 12-ounce bottles⁹.

Total Wine runs a dedicated “Oktoberfest Beers & Steins” hub alongside individual pages for Warsteiner Oktoberfest, Paulaner Bier Oktoberfest and Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier, though none of those product pages would load for a price check in this research, so no price appears here¹⁰.

One flag worth carrying into the store with you: Warsteiner is a Westphalian brewery, from North Rhine-Westphalia, not Bavaria, even though it sits right next to the Bavarian beers on Total Wine’s Oktoberfest shelf and category page¹⁰. It is a perfectly good beer. It is just not the one this article is about.

US craft Oktoberfest beers

Samuel Adams Octoberfest, from the Boston Beer Company, is the best-documented domestic option: a Märzen at 5.3 percent ABV, 15 IBU and 20 SRM, brewed with a two-row pale malt blend, Munich 10 malt, Caramel 60 malt and the brewery’s own Octoberfest malt, hopped with Tettnang Tettnanger and Hallertau Mittelfrüh. It is sold from August through October in draft, 12-ounce and 19.2-ounce cans, 6/12/28-pack bottles, and a Fall Legends Variety Pack. The brewery’s own pairing suggestion is bratwurst, roasted chicken, sauerkraut, soft pretzels and strudel, which lines up with the party menu on this site almost item for item⁵.

Non-alcoholic and low-alcohol options

If part of your twelve is not drinking, three confirmed options cover the table. Erdinger Alkoholfrei carries about 25 calories per 100ml, which the brewery markets as roughly 40 percent fewer calories than its standard wheat beer, positioned as an isotonic “ritual after sport” and fortified with vitamins B9 and B12¹¹.

Weihenstephaner’s non-alcoholic wheat beer uses falling film evaporation, developed with the Technical University of Munich-Weihenstephan, to let the beer ferment fully before the alcohol is removed rather than stopping fermentation early; the brewery’s own numbers are under 0.5 percent ABV, 75 kcal per half-liter, 12.7 percent original gravity and 14 IBU, served at 6–8°C, and it lists medals from AIBA and World Beer Awards competitions⁴.

For a non-Weißbier option, The Taste of Germany sells Eichbaum Non-Alcoholic German Lager in a 6×500ml pack for $10.95 as of September 2026¹².

How much beer to buy for twelve

There is no official source for “how much beer a party of twelve drinks,” so take this as Resi’s own arithmetic, not a researched statistic. A Maß, the one-liter mug, is the unit Munich actually pours in, and Hofbräu’s 5-liter mini-keg is a convenient party size at roughly five Maß per keg. For twelve people over an afternoon, two mini-kegs plus a case of bottles for anyone who wants a second style covers a normal party without anyone running dry, and it leaves the non-alcoholic options for the drivers and the not-drinking guests, which in my experience is a bigger slice of the table than most hosts plan for.

Resi says Buy your Maß mugs, not your paper cups, if you want the party to look and feel like the real thing. The Hofbräuhaus Maßkrug is the mug I would point you to for the beer drinkers, and the Weizen glass, tall and curved to hold a wheat beer’s head, is the one for anyone pouring Weißbier or a non-alcoholic wheat beer instead. Neither one is required. Both make the table look like it means it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What beer is actually from Munich's Oktoberfest breweries?

Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu München, Löwenbräu, Spaten and Augustiner are the six official Oktoberfest breweries, but only Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr and Hofbräu have a US importer that confirms the relationship on its own site.

Is Warsteiner a Bavarian beer?

No. Warsteiner is brewed in Warstein, North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany, though US retailers often shelve it alongside Bavarian Oktoberfest beers.

What is a good non-alcoholic option for an Oktoberfest party?

Erdinger Alkoholfrei, Weihenstephaner’s non-alcoholic wheat beer and Eichbaum Non-Alcoholic German Lager are all sold in the US and each has a confirmed source for its numbers and ingredients.

Is Samuel Adams Octoberfest a real Oktoberfest-style beer?

It is a Märzen, the older amber style historically associated with the festival, brewed by the Boston Beer Company with German-style malts and hops, sold seasonally from August through October.

What formats does Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier come in?

11.2-ounce bottles, 16.9-ounce cans, 5-liter mini-kegs and draft, available seasonally from July through October.

What should I pour Weißbier into?

A Weizen glass, the tall, curved glass built to hold a wheat beer’s thick head; it works for non-alcoholic wheat beer too.

How much beer should I buy for a party of twelve?

There is no official figure for this, but two 5-liter mini-kegs plus a case of bottled options, alongside a few non-alcoholic choices, is a reasonable starting point for an afternoon party.

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