vanocni hruska 12

Apples and pears are among the most popular types of fruit in Germany and we are big fans of the simple fruits. We were particularly impressed by the pear with its juicy, snow-white flesh and green skin with red or yellow cheeks. It’s great to eat straight from the tree, but it’s also great to process. We love creamy pear jam, compote with large pieces for pancakes, juice, crumble, cake and pear from the oven. The fruit also makes a good salad: For a wonderful starter for the winter menu, we slice the pear into thin slices, marinate it in a vinaigrette made from white wine vinegar, honey and olive oil and serve it with lamb’s lettuce, caramelized walnuts, freshly ground pepper and fluffy clouds made from goat cheese. The perfect beer for this dish also contains pear.

The Czech Pivovar Zichovec has brewed a wintery India Pale Ale that has been double cold hopped and refined with juicy pear puree, spicy ginger and exquisite cinnamon. In order to give the brew an elegant acidity, lactic acid cultures were added to it before fermentation with conventional yeast.

The end result is called Vánoční Hruška 12 and tastes like a fresh, tart version of an oven-roasted pear: melt-in-the-mouth sweetness, fruit acidity, fiery ginger spiciness and a warming hint of cinnamon.