Czech Beer in Prague

The most popular Czech beers are Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen and Budweiser Budvar, but hundreds of other lagers and speciality beers are produced by independent breweries, microbreweries and brewpubs all over Czechia.

Czech beer is served almost everywhere in Prague, from small cafés and pubs to the opera houses. It is fresh, cheap, and it tastes terrific.

CZECH BEER GUIDE

Czechia is the No.1 beer drinking nation on the planet, with an annual per capita consummation of some 156 litres.

The most common type of Czech beer is pale lager, which is bottom-fermented and brewed naturally from hand-picked hops. It has a delightful transparent golden colour, and is best served chilled with a tall head.

Most pubs in Prague only sell Czech beer, no other type.

When ordering a beer, ask for a “pivo” (beer, 0.5l) or a “malé pivo” (small beer, 0.3l).

Czech people are rightfully proud of their beer. Pilsner Urquell is the original Pils lager from which golden beers the world over are derived. It has been brewed in Plzeň, a Czech town south west of Prague, since 1842, and is commonly perceived as the premier Czech beer.

The Pilsner Urquell brewery also makes Gambrinus, which although popular in Czechia and sold in pubs throughout Prague, is hardly known outside the country.

Staropramen is brewed in Prague, and sold in pubs all over the capital city.

The most widely exported Czech beer is Budweiser Budvar (Budvar for short) - this is not to be confused with American Budweiser, which is unrelated.

Czech beer in Prague

In addition to the premium brands, small breweries all over Czechia produce excellent beers for domestic consumption.

Many Czechs choose to drink these local brews over the premium brands not just because they are cheaper, but because they prefer the taste.

Bernard, for example, is a highly regarded brewery based in East Bohemia; Cvikov, in the forested north of Czechia, produces terrific unpasteurised lagers; in the west of the country, Žatec brews the fine Malostranská Pils; and, Únětický Pivovar, just outside Prague, produces delicious filtered and unfiltered beers under the name Únětice.

Other Czech beers to look out for are Kozel, Radegast, Starobrno, Krušovice, Svijanské, Lobkowicz and Breznák.

In recent years, Czech breweries have expanded the variety of beers they produce. Some now brew dark ales too, "tmavé pivo". Velkopopovický Kozel Černý and Krušovice Černá beers, for example, are almost black in colour, and are served with a thick dark foam on top.

If you prefer an English-inspired ale, Velvet by Staropramen is a smooth and creamy dark beer. There are also pale ales, IPAs and wheat beer ("Pšeničné pivo"); the non-bitter taste of wheat beer can be very refreshing, particularly in the summer.

Price of Beer in Prague

A large beer in Prague costs around 70 CZK (0.5l = £2.41/€2.8/$2.92) in ordinary pubs and bars.

A large beer in Czechia (outside Prague) costs around 50 CZK (0.5l = £1.72/€2/$2.08).

Beer is so engrained in the national psyche that brewers are always wary of raising prices, and no politician would dare raise taxes too high either! Indeed, some brewers make such little profit on domestic sales that exports are vital to their business model.

So when in Prague, and Czechia in general, sample Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen, Budvar and the wide range of local Czech beers in the best way possible: fresh, chilled and cheap!

BEER in PUBS

In common with bars the world over, most Czech pubs use barrelled beers. Barrels are easy to manage and allow even the smallest pub to serve great tasting beers, provided things are done correctly.

The lengths certain pubs in Prague go to in their quest to serve the cleanest, most vibrant beer is extraordinary. Being a bartender in Czechia is a profession, a job to be proud of. Whereas it might be normal for pubs in other countries to clean their beer pipes once a week, some pubs in Prague will go through the process as often as twice a day!

A good bartender will be keen for customers to sample their full range of beers. To this end, you might see a 'flight of beers' on the drinks menu. This is a wooden holder containing 5 or 6 taster glasses of different beers. Customers can even sign up for a tutored tasting.

An example of a small pub that cleans it pipes twice a day plus does a good 'flight of beers' is Pult on V Celnici.

For a tutored beer tasting, try the Czech Beer Tasting experience.

TANK BEER IN PUBS & RESTAURANTS

Recent developments in brewing technology have led to the introduction of tank beer ("tankové pivo" or "pivo z tanku") in some pubs and restaurants in Prague.

Instead of using barrels, unpasteurised beer is transported from the brewery to the pub by tanker lorry.

At the pub, in the manner in which a fuel tanker delivers its load, the beer is fed via a pipe into a great stainless steel pressurised tank stored either in the cellar or on display in the pub.

The tank is lined with a waterproof, airtight polypropylene bag, which seals the beer in.

When the bartender pours a customer a beer, it flows from the tank to the beer pump to the glass. This is the first contact the beer has with air, and the result is a beer so fresh it tastes similar to drinking it direct at the brewery.

Pubs often display the tank in the main bar area as an aesthetic feature. The huge, free-standing, highly polished cylinder advertises that they have tank beer on tap.

The breweries Pilsner Urquell/Gambrinus and Staropramen lead the field in tank beer, followed by Budvar and Kozel.

Not all pubs can adopt the tank beer system. To make it viable requires significant investment, a high turnover of beer, and storage space for the tank. But the technique has grown rapidly in recent years, because the difference in taste and the economies of scale are impressive.

TANK BEER IS SERVED AT THESE PUBS ("PIVNICE"/"HOSPODA") IN PRAGUE:

Old Town Pubs: U Medvidku on Na Perstyne (Budvar), U Pivrnce on Maiselova (Staropramen), Pivnice Štupartská on Štupartská (Gambrinus), Lokál Dlouhááá on Dlouhá (Pilsner Urquell), U Zlatého tygra on Husova (Pilsner Urquell), U Rudolfina on Křižovnická (Pilsner Urquell).

New Town Pubs: U Pinkasů on Jungmannovo náměstí (Pilsner Urquell), Hospoda Lucerna on Vodičkova (Pilsner Urquell), Lokál U Jiráta on Vodičkova (Pilsner Urquell), Pivovar Národní on Národní (Pilsner Urquell), Dutch Pub (Krušovice).

Lesser Town Pubs: Lokál U Bílé kuželky on Míšeňská (Pilsner Urquell).

Castle District Pubs: U Černého vola on Loretánské náměstí (Pilsner Urquell)

Near City Centre Pubs: Dva kohouti on Sokolovská, Prague 8

TANK BEER IS SERVED AT THESE RESTAURANTS ("RESTAURACE") IN PRAGUE:

Old Town Restaurants: Ribs of Prague on Melantrichova (Pilsner Urquell), Potrefena Husa on Platnerska (Staropramen), U Vejvodu on Jilska (Pilsner Urquell), V Cípu on Michalská (Staropramen), Krčma on Kostečná (Pilsner Urquell), Na čepu on Ovocný trh (Pilsner Urquell) and Kozlovna Apropos on Křižovnická (Kozel).

New Town Restaurants: Vytopna Restaurant on Wenceslas Square (Krušovice), Sladovna Restaurant on Vodičkova (Cvikov), Kozlovna U Paukerta on Národní (Kozel), Srdcovka on Spálená (Gambrinus), Kantyna on Politických vězňů (Pilsner Urquell + Kozel Černý), Bredovsky Dvur Srdcovka on Politických vězňů (Pilsner Urquell), U Jindřišské věže on Jindřišská (Gambrinus), U staré pošty on Opletalova (Pilsner Urquell).

Lesser Town Restaurants: Pork's on Mostecká (Pilsner Urquell) and U Glaubiců on Malostranské náměstí (Pilsner Urquell).

MICROBREWERY PUBS

Microbreweries were the foundation of the Czech brewing industry (see 'Foundation' below). Fast forward a thousand years and an increasing number of pubs in Prague are reviving the tradition, brewing their own beer on site.

In the modern age of the global brewer, it can be nice to taste a unique craft beer, and see it being made: visit a microbrewery pub, order a beer, then take a look around the premises; the whole brewing process may not be visible, but you should get a good idea how it is done.

BEER IS BREWED AT THESE PUBS ("PIVNICE"/"HOSPODA") IN PRAGUE:

Old Town Pubs: U Medvidku on Na Perstyne, U Fleku on Kremencova, U Tří růží on Husova, U Supa on Celetná.

New Town Pubs: Pivovar Národní on Národní, Pivovarský dům Benedict on Jecná.

Lesser Town Pubs: Vojanův Dvůr on U Lužického semináře.

Castle District Pubs: Klášterní Pivovar Strahov (Strahov Monastery Brewery) on Strahovské nádvoří.

Prague 6 (outside the city centre): Břevnovský klášterní pivovar (Břevnov Monastery Brewery) on Markétská.

For a guided visit to the best Prague pub microbreweries, try the Prague Brewery Tour.

Foundation of the Czech Beer Industry

Czechs have been drinking beer for more than a millennium. The secret behind their brewing success is the country's agricultural conditions, which are ideal for growing hops.

Chronicles place the cultivation of Bohemian hops as early as AD 859, while the first evidence for the export of hops dates to AD 903.

Bohemian hops became so prized that King Wenceslas (907-935) ordered the death penalty for anyone caught exporting the cuttings.

In another act, he convinced the Pope to revoke an order banning beer brewing - which may explain why he is known as Good King Wenceslas!

In the early days of brewing, citizens of the Czech lands were only allowed to brew beer for their own consumption. Many people, therefore, set up a microbrewery in their home.

It wasn't long before citizens banded together to form a co-operative central brewery, from which they would take beer extract home and finish the brewing process there; the medieval equivalent of the home-brew kit. The first such brewery was built in Cerhenice in 1118.

From here, once the king's permission had been granted, it was a small step for breweries to begin hawking their wares to the general public. The Czech beer industry was spawned.

Decline and Rise of Czech Beer Brewing: 16th-19th centuries

The expansion of the beer industry was halted in the 16th century, when feudal lords discovered that forcing their labourers to drink the manor brew, instead of buying their beer from another brewery, was a clever way to line their pockets.

The Thirty Years' War then devastated the country, and Czech beer brewing in particular, as land was destroyed and resources were diverted elsewhere. At one point, beer was even used to pay off the Swedish army to prevent the plunder of Kutna Hora.

The Czech beer industry fell under the auspices of the Emperor in Vienna, and the situation remained dismal for many years, until the "Czech National Revival" movement in the late 18th and 19th centuries spurred the reinvention of the Czech language, Czech institutions and Czech culture.

Czech beer was about to experience a renaissance.

Pilsner Urquell: Beer Reinvented in 1842

Beer had been brewed in the city of Plzeň in Western Bohemia since the 1200s, but like elsewhere in the world it was dark, top-fermented beer. In 1842 this changed, when Pilsner Urquell produced the world's first golden lager. It was achieved through a new method of bottom fermentation, and by storing the beer in cold cellars cut into rock.

The new tasting pale lager, with its unrivalled clarity, was in such demand that it led to the establishment of new pubs in Prague, such as U Pinkasů at Jungmannovo náměstí, which to this day still sells Pilsner Urquell.

The new brewing technique was rapidly copied by brewers all over the world. A Czech brewmaster was even sent to Mexico to teach Mexicans how to brew beer (Bohemia beer from Mexico gets its name from this period).

20th Century: Beer under Communism

In the 20th Century under communism, the state took control of the brewing industry, and beer became very cheap. Indeed it was mandated to be so. The idea was that every man, no matter what job he did, should be able to afford a few beers regularly with friends without it hurting his pocket too much.

This helped to establish beer drinking as perhaps the single most popular hobby among Czech men. Unfortunately, as with other industries, the Communists failed to invest in the breweries. They simply produced beer and squeezed as much out of the industry as they could, leaving the buildings and equipment deteriorate.

After the Velvet Revolution: 1989

Since the fall of communism in 1989, there has been a rejuvenation of Czech brewing, but it has come at a price. All the major Czech breweries, apart from Budweiser Budvar, have been bought up by foreign brewing giants.

On the upside, a lot of investment has been ploughed in to create impressive modern brewing facilities. And Czech beers are now marketed worldwide as a premium product.

Today, nine out of ten beers produced and consumed globally are pale lagers based on the 1842 Pilsner Urquell method.

More Information

To learn more about Czech beer, and to join the Prague locals who drink it by the lorry load, book the Prague Brewery Tour, Czech Beer Tasting or Prague Tour With Food & Beer.

Prague Brewery Tour

Czech Beer Tasting