Freigeist Hoppeditz

Now that the official Oktoberfest has past and the every single company has put a “toberfest” at the end of their name for the entire month, I think it is good diligence to review a German beer. Now, before  start the review I wonder if Germans feel as strongly about Freigeist Hoppeditz as Californians feel about Pliny the Elder or Race 5 IPA. If I start an international incident by giving a bad review I give to you my most sincere “my bad.”

Freigeist Hoppeditz, Dopplesticke Ale is brewed by Braustelle in Cologne, Germany – is named after the traditional burning puppet at Dusseldolf’s Karneval.

On the pour Freigeist is a very dark red copper brown with slight white-reddish foam.

Very woody taste, malty, little hop kick, spices and caramel. Really didn’t get much citrus but it had some dark fruity taste to it – plum and cherry – so it has a bit of sweetness to it. “Plum” is not the first think I look for when I am buying a beer, in fact, its not even the 32nd thing I am looking for. These flavors came out as the beer got warmer. My kegerator is really cold, I know this beer could have benefited from warming up.

Coming in at 7.5%, it is not going to have you ripping off your lederhosen and howling at the moon after one glass.

I’m glad I tried something different from our German friends, but this is not a beer I would purchase again or want to share with my friends. I gave some to my wife for a taste test, she made “that face.” She refused a second offering.

Not to worry Deutschland, I will try another and another and another. Let me know what I am missing out.

Cheers,
Scotty