Best Czech beer?

Urquell, especially straight from the tap.

(Some may object because it's quite commercialized, but that doesn't mean it's bad, though.)

- Risto -

It's worse than "quite commercialized" (thanks to modernization and SABMiller). It's dumbed down. Gone are the wooden lagering kegs, which helped give the beer character in the old days. It's just another international pale lager now.

But perhaps you could put this in context by mentioning the other Czech beers you've tried, particularly the ones from the smaller brewers that are still making beers of character and distinction.

Bah. It may not be what it once was a good 30 years ago now, but it is far from "just another international pale lager now." Or are you serious in lumping it in with Heineken, Beck's, Stella Artois, Carlsberg, (American) Budweiser, etc.? If you are, you're daft.

PU is far from the best Czech beer I've ever sampled, but it's hardly just a run-of-the-mill yellow fizzy lager, and I'm not likely to turn down a fresh half-liter of the stuff.

There are all sorts of intereting beers from tiny Czech breweries, most of whose names I no longer recall.

That said, at least among Czech beers reasonably readily available in the States, Starobrno would be at my list of the top. But even that pales in comparison to some of the local Czech beers I've had the pleasure of sampling.

-Steve

That's o.k.

Holger

Haven't been there so I can only refer to what one can get in California, but I have been partial to Brauczech as of late. Lot of assertive hop character and a nice yeasty flavor. I also like Topvar from Slovakia, reminds me of Budvar but is much less expensive.

--Dan E

Hi Dan,

I never heard of that. Is it really Czech? Mr. Google also does not know much about it. Any details?

Prost,

Bastian

Hear, hear. I hope Nobody We Know has just let his youthful exuberance run away with him here.

Probably a brand-name for the foreign market. Example: Kralovsky Lev in the US was realyy Pernstejn from Pardubice, Czechvar eq Budvar etc. Zamek in the UK eq Samson

See

Cheers, Jomar

California,

I agree, Starobrno is excellent.

Hoedown wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@noemailaddress.nev:

I'll vote for Staropramen.

I vote for LEV. why? Because I can get it in UTah, of all places.

Recently (Friday 28 May 2004 17:02), Dan Iwerks () proclaimed:

I agree. it is very very good.