Olde Mecklenburg’s Mecktoberfest brings home the gold

Now, the German-styled offerings of Olde Mecklenburg Brewery just staged a coup: winning a gold medal with their seasonal Mecktoberfest in the European Beer Star competition.

This isn’t the first impressive medal win for Mecktoberfest; it previously won a silver at the Great American Beer Festival in 2012. But to win a gold, in a German-hosted competition, in a German-style Märzen category?

Ryan Self, head of sales for Olde Meck, sums it up: “This win proves you don’t have to be a mega-brewer to make the best beer in the world.”

In total, judges in the European Beer Star competition judged a whopping 1,957 different beers, up 21 percent from the year previous. Participating breweries spanned the globe, with winners coming from 23 different countries. German brewers took the most total medals (64, 20 of those gold) followed by American brewers (38 total, 18 of those gold).

Mecktoberfest is already a hot seasonal for Olde Mecklenburg, with sales of that brew rivaling those of flagship Copper for much of its production run. It’s traditionally available from the end of August to the end of October, and don’t expect that to change. “We make more every year,” Self said. “We make as much as we can for the season. We’re not going to start releasing the beer in July, or getting crazy with seasonal creep.”

The win was especially serendipitous; Olde Mecklenburg’s owner John Marrino was already due to be in Nuremberg for a trade show, so he was able accept the award in person on Wednesday. Marrino founded the brewery just six years ago, with production rising from around 1,000 barrels in 2009 up to 14,500 barrels in 2014.

On Friday, Olde Mecklenburg Brewery will be tapping the last of their Mecktoberfest supply until the new batch rolls out next year. Only six kegs are left, and will run from the tap room’s opening at noon until they simply run out. Complimentary half-pint samples will be available.

There remains a limited supply of bottles available, part of a Harvest Pack sixer. Two bottles each of flagship Copper, Mecktoberfest, and autumnal Bauern Bock are packaged together, with availability at the Olde Mecklenburg taproom and other select off-premise accounts in town. Don’t dawdle; these mixed packs were swift movers even before this important medal get.

“I’m sure there are a lot of folks over there right now wondering, ‘Who the hell is Olde Mecklenburg?” Self said. I’m curious to see a website traffic report in the morning, as the rest of the world discovers what Charlotte already knows: World-class beer is made in the Queen City.