Freigeist Bierkultur and Abraxxxas represent all that is wrong in beer and everything that is right.The German brewery -- with a name that translates to “free spirit” -- combines traditional, or I should say historical, German brewing with modern tastes.
Abraxxxas is based on the old Lichtenhainer style of weissbier. The obscure style died out a few generations ago, but it’s descibed in plenty of history books. Lichtenhainer is simultaneously sour and smokey and, in the case of this particular bottle, infused with pear juice.
Yeah. That sounds terrible. That sounds like the sort of thing Bud Light drinkers would make up to mock beer snobs. It sounds like the sort of thing a fancy Orange County brewery would put in fancy corked bottles and charge thirty bucks for. Because it’s historical and no one would buy it otherwise.
But, dammit, the beer is kind of nice. I wasn't off put by the smoke or the acid. The firewood scent added an extra layer of interest to the pear juice, and the light tartness kept the smoke from tasting oily. It’s actually quite refreshing and tasty. It’s like putting cheese in ice cream, it sounds like a stoner’s bad idea, but Salt and Straw is building an empire on such outlandish flavor combos.
Abraxxxas may seem bizarre, but it works. I picked up a bottle for like six bucks, and it was worth every penny.
