Belated Oktoberfest- Julian

As a testament to my procrastination as-of-late, here's a very belated but nonetheless enthusiastic Oktoberfest blog! It was about our 3rd Oktoberfest celebration and both of our first times to the eastern San Diego city of Julian, which is a quaint mountain town known for its apples and pies... and apple pies! It was a beautiful crisp day, albeit crowded as hell due to the close driving vicinity but far away feeling appeal.

I can honestly say that this was the best damn hot cider I have EVER had. It helps a lot when the apples were probably picked that morning around the corner.

Welcome to the festivities! It was a tiny Oktoberfest in comparison to La Mesa and El Cajon which draw thousands of hungry drunks every year, but it was lively and filled with delicious treats!

The bratwursts were going fast, and there was actually a wait to snag one of the plump delicacies. Absolutely worth the wait, and with some extra sauerkraut and spicy mustard there was nothing to complain about, except maybe the drool stains on my shirt.

Like I said, Julian is one of the top places around to get apples, and their pies are second to none, as evidenced by this line outside the Julian Pie Company. You can get these all around San Diego, or even mail order them anywhere in the country, but there's nothing like getting them right from the source!

Ashton shows us his spoils and bounty of the day. My boy didn't disappoint me.

Oktoberfest!

Is it just me, or is October THE BEST FREAKING MONTH OF THE YEAR?!?! Not only is it fall, the time of harvest, crisp winds, brisk nights, hoodie weather days, pumpkin bread, zucchini bread, spiced chai, it's home of OKTOBERFEST! Strangely, the original Oktoberfest had little to do with the drunken debauchery that it stands for today- that was just a happy accident. San Diego is home to quite a few of the largest Oktoberfests around, and while the big crowds head to La Mesa, the actual Germans and enthusiasts alike head to El Cajon every year for one of the best gatherings around.

Bowen and I are enthused about what we are about to experience. He's got attendance on me, however, as someone who drinks beer and eats meat, I think I feel a little more at home.

A great Bavarian band graced us with their tunes, and the German dancers never seemed to stop!

Believe me when I say that this brat (extra sauerkraut, extra spicy mustard) and Hofbrau brew NEVER tasted as good as it did then. It's all about the atmosphere...

There was an abundance of German pastries (an entire tent dedicated to their sweets!) and while I'm familiar with a few standards like apple strudel and Black Forest cake, I'd never heard of poppyseed cake. It was unbelievably sweet and crumbly, moist and dense and totally delicious. It had faint twinges of phantom chocolate, although there was nary a cacao bean to be found. An absolute delight.

Ashton was jealous of my brat and decided to retaliate by getting a pretzel the size of his torso. This gigantic monstrosity seemed well worth the price, and I feel confident stating that it could feed a family of four.

Alas, the season for 'festing is over all too soon, but it's never too early to start thinking of next year!