The Oktoberfest favorite Peterhosen lager is back at Peter B’s and in fine form.

The transition from summer to fall means football, sure. Back-to-school – that, too. But it also brings Oktoberfest and seasonal beers from the local brewpubs.

Peterhosen has marked the celebration at Peter B’s for well over a decade. It’s a märzen-style lager, which from other brewmasters might signal a beer lacking the usual heft of Oktoberfest options. But brewer Natalie Mika has crafted something worthy of pretzels and brats and a few cheerful prosits.

It is rich yet festive on the nose, with aromas of baking bread and tropical fruit. Mika began her career as a winemaker, and she understands how to play with bouquet. So the impressions of fruit fade on the palate, carried off by a tingle of spice. Instead, the beer is toasty, with a bitter streak of scorched caramel, hints of dry herbs and a mellow trace like roasted macadamia. It’s not a simple, mild-mannered lager. While Mika has tempered the hops true to the style, a resinous bite emerges toward the finish and lingers.

This is the märzen of Oktoberfest lore. In centuries past, it was a beer brewed in the tarrying chill of spring and aged in cool cellars until festival time. Peterhosen has the complexity and heft the seasonal celebration deserves, without fully sacrificing its lager manners.

Oktoberfest continues at Peter B’s through Oct. 5, when the lederhosen – and perhaps the sausages and pretzels – will be packed away for another year.

Peter B’s, 2 Portola Plaza, Monterey. 649-4511, portolahotel.com