Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Gambrinus (often shortened to 'Gambáč' and inexplicably
the country's most popular beer) and Velkopopovický
Kozel. Pilsner Urquell pubs around the country will nor-
mally carry the first two beers, and usually the dark version
of Kozel.
The country's number-two brewer is Prague-based Staro-
pramen, owned by the Central European brewing group
Starbev, which in turn is owned by American giant Molson
Coors. The company's brands include the flagship Staropra-
men lager and Velvet bitter, as well as international names
such as Stella Artois and Hoegaarden, which are produced
under license. Staropramen pubs usually carry the brewer's light lagers (including an
increasingly popular unfiltered variety), as well as Stella, Hoegaarden and occasion-
ally Leffe. While it was once viewed as nothing short of blasphemy to order a Stella
in a Czech pub, we've - gasp - even seen Czechs do it, so if you're in the mood for a
Stella, why not?
Velké Popovice Brew-
Beers made by Budvar (Budweiser) of České Budějovice (South Bohemia), the
country's third-biggest brewer, are a little harder to find in Prague but are common
throughout southern Bohemia and much of the rest of the country. The brewery's 12°
premium lager is worth seeking out, as well as its highly regarded premium dark,
which it first launched on the local market in 2004. The Budvar Brewery is partly
state-owned and, despite a long-running battle with the far-larger US-based Bud-
weiser (see the boxed text), owned by the InBev group, and persistent rumours of an
imminent privatisation, it remains the only major brewery in the country that's still
100% Czech-owned.
Czechs drink more beer per capita than anywhere else in the world
(around 160L per head per year, easily beating both Germany and Aus-
tralia), and the local
hospoda
or
pivnice
(pub or small beer hall) remains
the social hub of the neighbourhood.
THE KING OF BEERS VS THE BEER OF KINGS
In this big wide world, who could have imagined that two major brewers located
thousands of miles apart on different continents would each want to sell beer by
