Pilsen and Prague: where pilsner still has a real name
Ninety kilometers separate the factory that invented the golden lager from Prague's beer halls where draft beer is drunk standing up. We drove that line.
In the cellars of Pilsner Urquella, the temperature does not exceed7 degreesnot even in August, and they draw unfiltered beer from oak barrels that never reaches the bottle. The first sip down there, a hundred meters below the city, explains why the rest of the world has been trying for a century and a half to copy something that was created here by accident, out of desperation and a broken series.
In 1842, the citizens of Plzeň spilled thirty-six barrels of stale beer in front of the town hall and brought the Bavarian craftsman Josef Groll to make something drinkable. What came out—a clear, golden, hoppy, bottom-boiled, bitter beer—becamepilsner, a style that today accounts for about three-quarters of all beer on the planet. The original still flows from the same source, and is worth drinking where there is no transport, pasteurization or compromise.
Why Czech is drunk standing up and why it changes the taste
Czech beer rests on three things that cannot be moved:Zatec hops (Saaz)with low bitterness and floral tone, soft water of the Plzeň basin and techniquecold decoction cooking. The result is a 4.4 to 4.5 percent alcohol lager that has body, not just chill. He is looking for a real pubthin— draft beer with thick, creamy foam two or three fingers thick, which is not a decoration but an insulation that preserves the aroma.
If you are interested in how this style behaves in relation to IPA, stout or lambic, we explained it in the text aboutcraft beer from pilsner to lambic. And for the regional craft scene closer to home, check out our selectionfive craft breweries of the region.
Ninety kilometers to drive
From Plzeň to Prague there is exactly90 kmby highway D5 — one hour's drive. But the beer tourist is not in a hurry: the tour of the Pilsner Urquell factory lasts about 100 minutes and ends in the cellar, so the point is to spend the night in Pilsen, and arrive in Prague for lunch the next day. Beer and steering wheel don't mix; there is a border in the Czech Republic0.0 per thousandand the police take it seriously, so plan tastings where you sleep.
In 1842, the citizens of Plzeň spilled thirty-six barrels of stale beer in front of the town hall and brought the Bavarian craftsman Josef Groll to make something drinkable.
| Place | What to drink | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Pilsner Urquell, Pilsen | Unfiltered cask lager | Only in the basement during the tour |
| In Fleků, Prague | Dark lager 13° | Brewed in the same place since 1499. |
| In Zlatého tygra, Prague | Pilsner Urquell thin | Cult pub, come before 5pm |
| Local, Prague | Fresh bottled beer | Beer from tanks, without CO2 under pressure |
Beer is food, not drink
It goes with a light bedpork-dumpling-green— roast pork, dumplings and sauerkraut — because the fat and salt call for the bitterness of the hops. Order with a dark lagergoulashserved in hollowed out bread. Beer hall rule: the waiter marks you with lines on the coaster how much you've drunk and brings you a new beer as soon as the old one drops below a third — until you put the coaster over the glass, that means"enough".
If you prefer to combine the beer road with asphalt and wine closer to home, our guide throughthree routes for an extended weekendit works according to the same logic: slowly, with memorable pauses.
Prague markets itself as a city of bridges and a cathedral, but its real temperature is 6 degrees in the glass and the sound when the waiter drops a full pint on the wooden table. It is not photographed. It is drunk.
Questions & answers
short and to the point- Where did pilsner originate?
- In Plzeň in 1842, when the Bavarian craftsman Josef Groll made the first bottom-fermented golden lager. The original is still brewed today as Pilsner Urquell.
- How far is it from Pilsen to Prague?
- Exactly 90 km on the D5 highway, about an hour's drive. It is ideal to spend the night in Plzeň because the alcohol limit for driving in the Czech Republic is 0.0 per thousand.
- At what temperature is Czech lager served?
- Around 6 to 8 degrees, with a thick creamy foam of two or three fingers that protects the aroma of the hops and prevents rapid heating.
