Beer? In Prague? Yeah! And the best is...

By ROBERT SCHWARTZ
School of Communication
University of Miami

PRAGUE— “Pivo,” I say as I walk into another corner pub in Praha 3. The bartender is a very attractive young Czech woman with a proud face and high check bones. Her hair is dyed black. She does not speak English. The bar that she is standing behind is no longer than 10 feet, and the place has about five barstools, two tables and four patrons including myself.

In America, my one-word declaration would be laughed at, for pivo, in Czech, means “beer.”

An American bartender would need to know which type of beer I would like, whether I wanted light or full flavor, and a barrage of other menial details before I would actually be able to taste the sweet, carbonated goodness of the simple beer I was trying to order.

But, at this corner pub as is the case with most here in the Czech national capital, they only have one type of beer on tap. And the beer is good.

And good reason for it.

In Czech Republic, beer is more than a simple lifting drink. It is a passion, and way of life. The Czechs are the world’s largest per capita beer drinkers. They consume an annual 161 liters per person, according to a Czech beer exporter. Some Czechs drink it with breakfast, most have two or three half-liter glasses with lunch, after work or with dinner. It is, basically, treated the same way Americans treat milk, soda, or bottled water.

And when a certain product is this important, in a land with such a small population, they tend to do it right. Czech hops are known as the finest throughout the world and sought after for many international brews, as well as the brewing style, which includes just the essential ingredients: barley malt, hops, yeast and water.

And to make the high quality even more appealing, the beer is dirt cheap. It runs anywhere from 15 to 30 crowns (25 crowns to the dollar) for a half liter glass.

In my quest to discover exactly why Czech beer is best worldwide, I ventured into a slightly larger bar; at least one big enough for the bartender to speak English. This time it was Red, Hot & Blues, a bar designed to cater to the American, ex-patriot locals of Prague (Jakubská 12, Praha 1; open daily 9 a.m.-11 p.m.).

There I met Michael, a Romanian who has lived in Prague for seven years. Since Michael’s Romanian descent rendered him an impartial judge, I decided to ask him if he thought this beer was, in fact, the best the green planet has to offer.

“Czech beer is the best in the world,” he answered. “Even better than German.”

I pressed to inquire as to why this was. He informed me that for one, the brewing procedure is different. For starters, they use better hops. In a brand called Budvar in particular, the hops are called “Kvasinka.”

While Michael did not know the English translation for this word, he informed me that it is the highest quality in the world.

But it’s not just the ingredients. According to Michael, the reason lies in the population.

“The beer is so good here because of the population in comparison to that of, say, Germany (10 million people in the Czech Republic and 90 million in neighboring Germany),” he said. “But there is the same amount of beers.” (Almost 100 are on the market, not including micro-breweries). “So for a beer to stand out here it really needs to be special."

This accounts for the incredibly meticulous nature of the beers’ manufacturing process, and the battle for better ingredients, won, according to Michael, by Budvar, with the Kvasinka hops, not used in any other Czech beer.

And along those lines, I decided a field test was in order and, who better to use for a guinea-pig than myself.

In the interest of time, I tested only the four most popular beers, found as the sole beer on tap in most bars and usually marked on a large hanging sign outside the pub displaying the beers’ logo: Staropramen, Budvar, Gambrinus, and Pilsner Urquell (a brand that is easily available in the U.S.).

Each beer is available in two or more alcohol contents (usually 10 and 12 degree, which means 3 percent and roughly 4.5 percent alcohol by volume). To be fair, I stuck with 10 degree.

Staropramen Lager, the most popular, according to Michael the bartender, has been brewed since 1869. The brewery held a beer fest in Prague in 2000 that was so popular it is now an annual event. The beer is exported to 36 countries around the world. Staropramen’s Pale Ale won best 10 degree beer in the Czech Republic in 2002.

The head is light and very frothy (head is looked at as one of the more important parts of beer in the Czech Republic, not avoided as is done in America). The beer has a full-bodied, hopsy taste, with hints of wheat. The finish is clean, lingering and slightly bitter. The color holds a pale amber.

Gambrinus, a very large brewing company, boasts the highest range of different types of beers within one brand. It is the flagship brand. Gambrinus Pale Lager is brewed in Pilsen (or Plzeň in Czech, the same location about 80 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of Prague, of Pilsner Urquell, and many other Czech brands).

The head is thicker, but still very frothy, and lingers more. The taste is less hopsy and more crisp. Gambrinus is a lighter beer but has a very full-bodied flavor. The taste of malt is more apparent, and it’s a bit sweet and nutty. The finish is less lingering, and is slightly bitter with hints of wood and smoke. The color is a pale gold.

Pilsner Urquell is named for its home town, Pilsen. Home to the Plzensky Prazdroj Corporation (owner of both the Pilsner Urquell and Gambrinus brands), Pilsen is a legendary brewing town, with a history dating back over 160 years.

Pilsner Urquell has a very light and foamy head. The taste is the lightest of Czech beers. It is very malty with a distant taste of hops, and a gentle bitterness. The finish has a slightly bitter aftertaste, and lingers for a short time.

Budvar is produced in Ĉeské Budějovice, located approximately 140 km (85 miles) south of Pilsen. They are self-proclaimed to using only top ingredients, such as pure virgin spring water, their own cultivated yeast culture and Moravian barley.

Budvar has very foamy head with medium consistency. The taste has a very harmonious blend of the malt and hops, and is very full-bodied and thick. The finish is lingering and slightly bitter, and leaves a full taste in the back of the throat. The color is a rich, dark gold.

And the results?

Keeping in mind that each of these beers far surpasses any made in America, I calculated the results based taste, how quickly they fill you up and the type of buzz each one gives you.

In order, my favorite is Gambrinus, followed in a very close second (almost a tie) with Budvar, then Staropramen and Pilsner Urquell.

This does not mean I’ve grown picky however (most Czechs are very loyal to their own personal brand), at least not yet. But whichever type of beer you choose, the world over, it will be best if it’s ordered as “pivo.”

(Photo by Jennifer Boehm).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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