Lonely_Planet_Asia_September_2017

BEER TOUR

4 5 6

Cooling Fermentation Maturing

7

Kegging and bottling

The ready-to-drink beer is transferred to

kegs, casks or bottles. CO2 may be add-

ed to carbonate it. Some brewers prefer

to carbonate naturally with a secondary

fermentation in the bottle or cask.

Depending on the style and alcohol

content, the beer will be kept in a keg,

bottle or barrel for anything from a

couple of weeks to several years while

the flavours mellow and change.

The wort is cooled as quickly as
possible to avoid any bacteria
developing in the soon-to-be-beer,
and then transferred to a fermenter.

Once cooled, yeast is added and the

wort begins to ferment. Ales are

fermented for 7–10 days at around

18–25°C, while lagers are fermented for

2–3 weeks at a temperature of 6–13°C.

Pilsner Urquell

U Prazdroje 7, Plzeň;

prazdrojvisit.cz; 00 420 377 062 888

OBarOTakeoutOTransport OFood OFamily OTour

Few breweries can claim to have invented their own style of

beer, but few breweries have the history of Pilsner Urquell.

The original Pilsner from the town of Plzeň, Pilsner Urquell

• or ‘original source’ – was first brewed on 5 October 1842,
  in a new ‘burghers’ brewery’ built by the 250 local citizens
  who then held brewing rights. While the owners were
  mostly Czech, the beer was an international collaboration:
  the first brewmaster, Josef Groll, came from Bavaria, as did
  the bottom-fermenting lager yeast, while the resulting
  beer’s pale gold colour, a novelty at the time, was due to an
  English-style malt kiln using indirect heat. Local influences
  included Czech barley and hops, as well as Plzeň’s extremely
  soft water.
  Today visitors can tour the still-functioning cooperage.
  Pilsner Urquell produces only one beer – the classic pale
  lager – but there is also an old-style lager, an exceptionally
  charismatic and sharply bittersweet version that is still
  fermented in wooden vessels, which is only served in the
  historic limestone cellars at the end of the brewery tour.
  Tasting it should be on everyone’s beer bucket list.

Great Synagogue

Europe’s third-largest

synagogue, this Gothic-

style building was

completed in 1892.

Restored in 1998, it is

now used for concerts

and art exhibitions.

zoplzen.cz

Puppet Museum

A beautifully restored

Gothic building on Plzeň’s

main square, filled with

puppets and marionettes,

including original versions

of local favourites Spejbl

and Hurvínek.

muzeumloutek.cz

THINGS TO DO NEARBY

Patton Memorial

One of the forgotten

stories of WWII is

celebrated in this unique

museum dedicated to

the liberation of western

Czechoslovakia, including

Plzeň, by the US Army.

patton-memorial.cz

Techmania

This interactive

museum for children

offers presentations

on electricity, fun with

infrared cameras, turbines

and train engines, and

a 3D planetarium.

techmania.cz