One of the most acclaimed PA breweries will be releasing three Fall seasonal beers next month…
Long before the first maple leaves begin to blush or a cool evening settles over Lake Wallenpaupack, breweries know the seasons have changed. Oktoberfest lagers quietly reclaim tap handles while summer ales begin to disappear, pumpkin beers return to refrigerators and richer flavors start edging out bright, citrusy refreshment. This year, Wallenpaupack Brewing Company is embracing that annual transition all at once, releasing three returning seasonal favorites: Oktoberfest Märzen Lager, Cranberry Sauced Fruited Ale and Pumpkin Ale.
All three beers will be available in limited quantities beginning at noon on Aug. 27, with fresh draft pours also available in the brewery’s taproom, giving visitors the rare opportunity to taste three very different expressions of the same season side by side.
For Wallenpaupack Brewing, that range has become part of its identity. Since opening in 2017 under founder Rebecca Ryman, the brewery has grown from a local newcomer into one of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s most recognized craft breweries. Its spacious brewpub overlooking Lake Wallenpaupack has become as much a destination as the lake itself, while its beers have earned accolades at competitions across the country and abroad. Yet despite the awards, the brewery has never confined itself to one style, choosing instead to move comfortably between crisp German lagers, expressive Belgian ales, hop-forward IPAs and inventive seasonal releases.
That philosophy is perhaps best illustrated by this year’s fall lineup.
The Oktoberfest begins where every good Märzen should: with malt. The first sip brings toasted bread crust, a touch of biscuit, and a gentle richness that feels comforting without becoming heavy. As the beer opens, those warm malt flavors gradually give way to a clean, dry finish that invites another drink almost before you’ve set down the glass. Märzens have never been beers that demand attention with bold flavors or extravagant ingredients. Their appeal lies in restraint, in balance, and in the quiet confidence that comes from a style refined over generations. Wallenpaupack’s version honors that tradition while remaining thoroughly approachable.
If Oktoberfest is grounded in tradition, Cranberry Sauced happily wanders somewhere more playful. Inspired by homemade cranberry sauce, the ale is conditioned over blood orange, pineapple, and cranberries, ingredients that sound almost exuberant on paper but settle into surprising harmony in the glass. The cranberry arrives first, bright enough to awaken the palate before citrus softens its edges. Blood orange lends fragrance more than sweetness, while pineapple rounds the fruit with a subtle tropical note. Beneath it all is a gentle thread of Belgian spice that keeps the beer from drifting into cocktail territory. The result is layered rather than loud, tart without becoming puckering, and refreshing in a way that feels especially welcome during those lingering late-summer afternoons that haven’t quite surrendered to fall.
Pumpkin Ale completes the trio, although it refuses to lean on the excess that has come to define so many pumpkin beers. Real pumpkin provides an earthy backbone while cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg weave through the malt instead of sitting on top of it. The spices are present, certainly, but they never overwhelm the beer beneath them. What lingers after each sip is not sweetness so much as warmth, a reminder of fresh-baked bread, spice cabinets opened for holiday cooking, and cool evenings that call for one more pint before heading home. It is a pumpkin ale that trusts the drinker enough to value balance over spectacle.
Visitors may arrive in Hawley for a day on the lake, but by late August, the brewery has a seasonal rhythm all its own. The simultaneous return of Oktoberfest, Cranberry Sauced and Pumpkin Ale is more than a can release; it has become a quiet marker on the calendar, signaling that another Pennsylvania autumn is just around the corner. One beer celebrates centuries of German brewing tradition, another finds unexpected elegance in cranberry and citrus, and the third reminds us why pumpkin beer became a fall ritual in the first place. Together, they capture that fleeting moment when summer loosens its grip and the year’s most comforting flavors begin to take their place.
