Plzeň and the glory of Czech beer – a beer tour

The Czechs drink more beer per person than anyone else, and Plzeň is where the first pale lager – pilsner – was brewed in 1842. Today more than two-thirds of the world’s beer is that style. This beer tour links Plzeň with Prague’s beer halls and small monastery breweries. You’ll taste classic pale lagers, dark beers, wheat beers and unusual flavours from cherry to nettle.

Plzeň

• The Pilsner Urquell brewery – tour the historic brewery with its giant copper kettles, the bottling line and the underground cellars, where you can taste unpasteurised, unfiltered beer straight from an oak barrel.
• The Plzeň underground – about 20 km of tunnels and cellars beneath the old town, part of them open to visitors.
• Republic Square – one of the largest in the Czech Republic, with Gothic St Bartholomew’s Cathedral and the country’s tallest church spire (about 103 m).
• The Great Synagogue – the second-largest in Europe.
• The Brewery Museum – the story of beer since ancient times.

Beer-lover’s Prague

• Strahov Monastery – a monastery brewery with views of the city. Try the St Norbert beers: pale, dark, amber and seasonal.
• U Fleků – Prague’s oldest beer hall (since 1499), serving a dark beer brewed only here.
• Novoměstský pivovar – famous for its unpasteurised lager.
• Small craft breweries – with beers flavoured with coffee, banana or nettle.

See also our Prague guide.

What to try

• Tank beer (tankové pivo) – unpasteurised and delivered in tanks, the freshest there is.
• Řezané – “cut” beer, half pale and half dark.
• Mlíko (“milk”) – a glass filled almost entirely with foam.
• Bar snacks: utopenec (pickled sausages), hermelín (marinated cheese) and roast pork knee.

Four-day programme

1. Prague – arrive, with a medieval beer party in the evening.
2. Prague – Strahov Monastery, Prague Castle, Charles Bridge and tastings.
3. Plzeň – the Urquell brewery and the underground.
4. Fly home.

Practical tips

• The Czech Republic has zero tolerance for drink-driving – don’t drive after a tasting.
• Book the Pilsner Urquell tour in advance.
• Plzeň holds the Pilsner Fest in October.