Just because Oktoberfest stands cancelled this year, doesn’t mean you don’t load up on craft beer. If you’re still in the mood to keep the party going, albeit indoors, craft beer brands and special menus tell you how

Effingut Breweries

With a ‘Go all craft and preservative-free’ motto, Effingut Breweries is curating a beer and dishes menu with a new entry — spent grain pretzels. While Effingut brews the usual Oktoberfest beer called Marzen every year, they launched Effingut 2 Go across Maharashtra, and have a selection of craft beers to choose from. I found the Sorachi Ace Saison particularly tasty. If you’re hosting beer pong at home, they also have ready-to-eat microwave dishes to go with your drinks. There’s a party.

Available: At Effingut 2 Go outlets in Mumbai and Pune.

 Crafters

Mumbai’s microbrewery, Crafters, has launched their first ever beer growler station this month, which has seven flavours of beers on tap that are available in growlers for takeaways. Growlers are pressurised containers that carry freshly brewed craft beer. If your game night is looking for some fresh cucumber lager or a fruity Hefeweizen, this is it.

Available: On order via www.crafterscraftbeer.in or through WhatsApp and Call. The takeaway growler can also be picked up from the outlet in Andheri.

 Hammer & Song’s Oktoberfest Lager

Cuffe Parade’s Hammer & Song has a craft beer menu that has quite a few options to go with your meal, and they have an Oktoberfest Lager, a traditional German-style Helles lager too. Think a fried chicken-French Fries-with-interesting dips-weekend, and some old school lager to chug.

Available: For directly ordering through Hammer & Song website, call on +91-22-40647733.

BeeYoung Strong Craft Beer & Yavira Lager

Yes, it’s so much fun to step out to a brewery, but standing around at bars is not a great idea right now. If you don’t like your beer too light, BeeYoung is a crafted strong beer with a punchy taste. Pairing it with some heavy snacks for a much needed beer binge night sounds like a plan you’d not want to skip. For the lager lovers and for those who like to pair their beer with some fine Indian food, Yavira will do the trick.

Available: In Delhi-NCR, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh

Tapped Flight

Beer subscription box, yes. The Tapped Beer Festival has seen over 400 craft beers in the past five years, now there’s Tapped Flight, a beer subscription box that lets you receive a curation of brews, first access to new beers, etc. The Curious Case features a selection of 12 or 24 bottled beers that are handpicked by the Tapped team. Each Flight (mystery subscription box) has four different styles of bottled beers, both Indian and international. They also have the Swingin Growler Subscription, for those who like to enjoy a freshly brewed draught beer at home. This is where your next house party beer can come from.

Available: on www.tappedflight.com

7Rivers Pretz-Ale

The very newly launched microbrewery in Bengaluru, 7rivers brewpub at Taj MG road is doing an Oktoberfest brew — Pretz-Ale — a Munich-style lager using handmade pretzels. Not that Bengaluru is ever devoid of brewery options, but this sounds like a place that will help your brewery tastebuds evolve, in case you’re looking to explore.

Available: At Taj MG road, Bengaluru