Kloster Scheyrn - Kloster Gold

Overview: I nearly missed this beer. I am sure there is an explanation when you are convinced you have tried something and can’t remember drinking it - probably trying too many (but not at the same time). This beer comes the Klosterbrauerei (Abbey brewery) of Scheyern, North of Munich.

The Beer: 12.5°, 5.4%; It smells of apples, almost as if it is stored in cider kegs, you get the hops in there too; clear, golden-amber with traces of bubbles rising; has a fabulously roasted-bitter taste, but not too much, rounded fizz but perhaps a little too much gas, I am still getting a apple essence in there but the bitterness has, it does have an excellent finish to it; pleasant enough after taste slight bitterness but not too over powering.

After words: You would like to think they have spent some time getting this beer right. If this is what they do with the the helles then I would love to try out their other beers (especially the doppelbock). Certainly not tried this beer before or even heard of it whilst I lived in Germany (considering the number of breweries this is unsurprising), but it was certainly worth giving a go. It does have something about it; the initial impression was one of a strong taste and rounded flavour; however, as the rest of the glass emptied it was getting more and more bitter and just a little too on the acidic side. Like the beer glasses they show on the website.

Website: Klosterbrauerei Scheyern

Pivovarsky Dum - Křižíková 17°

Overview: This was the first of the beers on tap at Pivovarsky Klub, probably the wisest of choices to try first considering - more on that later. From what I can find out about this beer it used to be brewed at the Klub itself; however, now this is brewed at the Dum (the Klub’s sister brewery/pub), at least according to the tap label. The name comes from the Klub’s address in Prague. Unless someone can correct me on this, it appears that this is only served at Pivovarsky Klub.

The Beer: Krizikova 17°, 5.5% abv; darker tan in colour with a solid, frothy head; has a distinctly solid smell to it giving off a strong, roasted, malty smell; it certainly has a lot of body to it’s flavour, you get the stronger roastings in there, the flavour takes over the mouth and accompanies the bitterness; I didn’t find the bitterness too over powering and the aftertaste is string but not too unpleasant.

After Words: You certainly know you are drinking something with a full bodied character. Being someone who likes espresso coffee, usually deep roasted, this has an excellent taste to it. As as beer to start with I would say this is the better choice because it is all powerful in the taste department; if you follow this up with a lighter beer then you will still get the taste’s from the Krizikova ambushing the taste buds. Its an excellent beer, but this is probably one for someone who likes strength to the taste.

Wesbite: Pivovarsky Klub

Pivovarsky Klub

Another great adventure, this time with two drinking buddies. I am not sure what made us choose to come here when we did, but the general consensus was that it has taken us too long. We already know the sister pub Pivovarsky Dum and the great beers and food they have to offer, but for some reason had totally missed out on the klub. Whilst it, currently, only produces one of its own beers at the moment, it has to offer six beers on tap and shelves of bottled beer from all over Czech Republic, plus a few offering from elsewhere - it was good to see a few old friends from Belgium and Germany.

The pub itself it divided in two: the upstairs, non-smoking section which has all the bottled beers; the downstairs smokey section. Towards the ceiling there are shelves of empty beer bottles, some seemingly very old Czech beer bottles, and a very impressive collection of beer glasses. It also has to offer, for sale, some beer orientated items such as wooden racks for storing/carrying beer, glasses of varying descriptions, and plenty of take-away vessels (glass and plastic bottles, plus a small barrel holding 5 liters from the taps). To complete the beer theme, the tables rest of Pilsner Urquell beer barrels, and where there is space on the walls even more beer related items.

To say that this is, probably, the place for beer aficionados to come to when in Prague would be missing the point. The euro-lager-heads have their places, the non-fussed have theirs, and for those who really appreciate their beer there is the likes of Pivovarsky Klub (amongst many other micro-breweries in Prague, which does make it seem that in Prague we are very spoilt for choice, and we are). The food is simple and takes up around four pages of the menu. The rest of the 20 or so pages are taken up with the complete beer inventory. We had the marinated Camembert to start with - which was excellent. The beers we tried I have listed below and lead off to their own reviews (when I get round to writing about them, one down three to go).

Anyone who appreciates their beer should try the place out. The taps beers change from time-to-time so there is always something different to try; the smoke free level is appreciated; the sheer beer-ness of the place is overwhelming; and what’s more it is in a central location. It is simply fabulous!

Thanks to Raj for the photos - I need to get a better compact camera for such occasions. Thanks to Adrian for providing some great beer descriptions - the Cheerio without the honey has to be the best.

Website: Pivovarsky Klub

Beers: Křižíková 17°

Richter Lezak

Overview: Today I had lunch at the Richter Brewery. It has been on the list of things to do for some time, not least because I wanted this to be the first try at the Kvasnicovy Lezak style of beer. Yes, I must confess that I have been in Czech Republic for well over two years and can’t recall trying this style of beer. Essentially this style of beer is the same as the Pilsner style, but has younger aged beer added to it after the initial lagering. This continues the process of fermentation and what you have in the glass is a healthy, half liter of living beer. I am reliably informed that Richter produces one of the best examples of such a style and is a good place to start sampling.

The Beer: Richter Lezak, 12.5°, 5% alc vol.; certainly cloudy with a solid foam head, little or no gas rising; rich smell, hoppy, yeasty certainly a good beer smell, nothing light; the taste is interestingly complex, it has a mashy, yeasty taste, somewhat fresh to start out with and then the bitters rampage across the tongue giving a rounded and fabulously pleasant taste; this taste lasts and fills the mouth for some time.

After words: There are two things to note here: the first is that the beer was something else, whilst I can see (i.e. visually) why it is compared with white/wheat beers, this has a far fuller taste and leaves wheat beers far behind. The second is that the brewery is far enough away from where I live to be almost depressing. There are nine beers on offer which means at least another eight more visits, and given this one example I would like to think, or at least hope that the rest of the beers follow a similar quality experience. Additionally the food was good, the pub was full, everyone seemed happy to be there and the service was stunningly good - waitresses happy, pleasant, service was quick; this is not the place to mention services in general in Prague but such service does stand out and is not usual. I cannot recommend this highly enough. The one downside, as I have mentioned, is that it is too far away from home which is down to my misfortune and lack of planning.

Website: Pivovar U Bulovky

Paulaner - Original Munchner Hell

Overview: One of the more well known of the Munich breweries, certainly outside of Germany. Partly, but not wholly, owned by Heineken, it does seem to be doing rather well for itself it offers a regular 15 types of beer and a few special series of beers. I remember going to the Paulaner Brauhaus (one of many) in Munich as well as in Singapore - it was like an oasis in a desert of otherwise shoddy beers, I was certainly happy at the fact they exported to Asia, but not happy at the prices.

The Beer: Original Munchner Hell, alc 4.9% vol.; Amber, light-gold, traces of bubbles rising; has a clear, crisp odour to it, you get the hops there from the beginning but not an over powering scent; certainly a full hoppy taste, medium bitter from the start to the end, pleasant without taking over the mouth; bitter after taste followed by some sweetness.

After words: From from “hell”, this is a lager style. The Paulaner website says it has a spicy taste to it, I must have missed that part, but it has a distinctive taste non the less. I know this goes very well with Germanic style foods, but on its own (without food) it isn’t something I would necessarily choose to drink. Having said that I am a fan of this beer, it is good from the bottle and you are getting spoilt if it from the tap. A great beer.
It is worth noting that the website information actually shows the wort value, this is good to see. For this beer it is given as 11.5%.

Website: Paulaner Brauerei (the site is information but the design is overly Flash-y)