As the old Czech proverb goes, kde si pivo varí, tam se dobre darí: where beer is brewed, life is good. The Czech Republic is well known for its mastery of brewing some of the best golden lagers in the world, and the respect among Czechs for the art of the brew is evident upon entering any pub. In Prague, beer has been elevated to the status of lifeblood, a liquid essential to the health and longevity of its proud imbibers.
The earliest historical record of beer making and hop-growing in the Czech Republic dates back to the 11th century at monasteries in East Bohemia. Though this beer would most likely be considered undrinkable by today’s standards, the centuries-old experimentation with brewing has clearly made extensive progress. In 1842, a single municipal brewery was founded just outside of Prague in a town named Pilsen, and a single, now-world-famous lager was conceived. The baby’s name was Pilsner Urquell, and it is now one of the best and most imitated beers in the world.
Most Czech beers are bottom-fermented lagers, locally brewed using Moravian malt and hand picked hops. The beer is fermented using strictly natural ingredients: water, hops, yeast, and barley. It is brewed in the traditional, simple way, and breweries proudly use no chemicals in the process. There are two main families of Czech beer: svetly (light) and cerné (dark). Svetly is a pale amber or golden-hued lager-style beer with a crisp, hoppy flavor (like Staropramen or Pilsner Urquell), while the dark beers are sweeter, richer, and fuller-bodied (Kozel, Gambrinus, etc.). Beers are served at what the Czechs call “cellar temperature,” which might be a bit warmer than what Americans are used to, but the temperature is most conducive to enhancing the flavors of the beer. Regardless of what brew you order in Prague, it will come out in a giant half or one-liter mug with a signature tall, creamy head, and it will be no more than three U.S. dollars. For this reason, most visitors to Prague pick up the word “pivo” right away.
Walking down any street in Prague, a love of beer emanates from bar after bar. Pilsner Urquell, Budvar, Gambrinus, and Staropramen signs adorn the sides of buildings, and tourists stagger past with glazed-over expressions of glee after partaking in this cultural phenomenon. It is not unheard of to spot a Czech with a small bottle of beer in hand at 8 am on their way to work; Per capita, Czechs drinks more beer than anyone else in the world. With an impressive figure of 157 liters of beer per head per year, the Czechs leave both Germany and Australia in the dust when it comes to the art of drinking. Though these statistics seem impressive, they do little to fully represent the importance of beer drinking as perhaps the dominant social practice in Prague. In recent years, there has been a tremendous amount of new interest in the traditional brewing process in the Czech Republic and closer attention is paid to the values and quality of breweries, resulting in sprinklings of unique microbreweries across the country.
The microbreweries in Prague are some of the best in the country. Take for example the famous microbrewery Pivovarsky Dum, where a sour cherry beer is served. The seemingly antagonistic flavors of fresh cherry and hops balance out in this particular brew and create a sweet, sour, and refreshingly smooth blend. The brew is served with a fresh cherry and will alter any pre-conceived notions you may have had about how beer should taste. At another restaurant, Kolkovna, the most famous brew is a mixed svetly and cerné beer, which combines the best of both worlds into one full-bodied yet crisp beer. These interesting concoctions are the product of years of experimentation in the brewing process, and a love for the art itself.
Beer in Prague is a work of craftsmanship and creativity, and this attention to quality is what makes this cultural practice so powerful. To Czechs, beer is ziva voda or “life-giving water,” and beer drinking is treated more as a philosophy than a pastime.
Leave a Reply