Dobranska Desitka is the 10˚ unfiltered house lager, light orange-colored in the glass and sitting beneath a fine and firm head of snow-white foam. A nose of crushed grain (think Grape Nuts) with underlying hints of resin and ripe pineapple in the background leads through to an appetizingly crisp mouthfeel that is softened by a flurry of light sugary caramel notes before a dry, bittersweet finish. It’s marvelous.

Dobranska Hvezda is the 12˚ svetly lezak (light lager), a superlative beer with sweet toasted grain, slight pepperiness and delicate Saaz-derived floral notes all vying for attention on the nose. The palate has a hint of fruit pastilles, a slight sweetness and a long lasting dry and bitter finish. A lightbulb flashes on in my head. I ask Petruzalek if what we are drinking is really a pilsner style, bearing in mind the closeness of the historical brewery (I didn’t know then that he had worked there until 2003). The answer, translated, comes back, “All these beers would be adjudged to be a pilsner style because of the way they are made.”

I guess he means yes. However, search through the rest of the Czech-brewing world and you will only find one brewery using the term pilsner: the mighty Pilsner Urquell, a Hercules of beer that has bestrode the world since its arrival in 1842. On that sunny afternoon, passing through this gorgeous array of beers, I wonder why this is so. Especially as in the rest of the brewing world the terms pils and pilsner/pilsener are sprinkled about as freely as ticker tape on a big day in Lower Manhattan.

Fifteen bridges cross the Vltava and one of them, The Charles Bridge is reserved for pedestrians. Because Prague is an intensely visited city, walking across the crowded Charles Bridge to Prague Castle at the top of the hill can be an adventure. On a hot sunny day – even on a cold winter day – this walk can make a traveler thirsty. Luckily, there is a brewpub near the castle. The Klasterni Pivovar is the perfect spot to stop for a beer, whether one’s fancy is a classic Czech pilsner or one of Klasterni’s specialties, such as a hoppy Easter beer, a sweet, dark lager or an amber lager.

Crossing back over the Charles Bridge to the flat, eastern side of Prague, the thirst for beer again arises. Here there are many pub choices in the Old Town or New Town, the two primary sections of the city.

U Flecků, noted as the world’s oldest brewpub (1499), serves just one beer, a remarkably tasty dark lager. On the one hand, it’s hard for a beer traveler to pass up visiting U Flecků. On the other hand, these days this pub is almost completely geared to the tourist trade. One would be hard pressed to find a Prague citizen heading there for a beer. And the prices are higher than in most Prague pubs.

Luckily there are other great pubs in Prague. Upinkasů is a delight. U Medvidku specializes in Budvar Budweiser. U Zlatého Tygra and U Kocoura sell Pilsner Urquell. In a small space downstairs from the Czech Beer & Malt Association offices is Pivovarský Dům, the first Prague brewpub to open after the Velvet Revolution of 1989. The pub opened in 1998 and serves a breathtakingly tasty unfiltered pilsner.

In case it’s not already obvious, when one discusses beer in the Czech Republic, the talk is of pilsner. Almost exclusively. There are dark lagers and blond bocks and a smattering of other beers, but pilsner is king and has been so since the mid-1800s. In the Czech Republic pils is beer and beer is pils.

Pilsner Pedigree

Pilsner is no doubt the pan-global beer style, but its pedigree lies squarely in Bohemia.

Plzen was established in western Bohemia at a strategic site, proximal to several economically important rivers and trading arteries. Founder King Wenceslas II, in 1295, initially granted the right to brew beer to Plzen’s citizens, who quickly coalesced to form a cooperative brewing venture.

In 1307, Plzen formed its first brewery and not long afterward, realized its first strides toward commercial brewing. With the aid of subsequently formed guilds, the brewing industry strengthened, and the economic and artistic importance of brewing became ensconced in Bohemian culture. King Wenceslas II was so instrumental in maintaining and furthering the art of brewing that he was honored as the patron saint of brewing by the Bohemian guild.

Over the next several centuries, beer gained importance in European culture. Beer was economically significant as a source of revenue, socially vital as an escape, and valuable as food and as a way to preserve water. And while it could be assumed that beer quality was somewhat improved from earlier products, it would be some time before the evolution from dark, turbid brews to the later tidy, light-colored beers would be complete.

Science And Serendipity

After a tumultuous period of pillage and plague in the 17th century temporarily stymied brewing progress in Europe, things settled down and set the stage for the birth of modern brewing. In the middle of the 18th century, some tools and techniques that we might consider elementary today were implemented in brewing protocols, and the Czechs were on the point.

They were purportedly the first to utilize the thermometer to maximize mash conditions. They made the hydrometer a standard brewing tool. The Czechs also took advantage of the new malting technology to create mellow, light-colored malt. Although these were welcome additions to brewing, Czech beer was still top fermented and less refined than the German brews of the day. The final piece would soon be added to the puzzle.

The brewery known today as Pilsner Urquell (Plzensky Prozdroj) was built specifically to emulate the famous lager bier of Germany. A Bavarian brewer, Josef Groll, was hired to oversee the operation. Using a bottom-fermenting yeast smuggled to Plzen from Bavaria, Groll introduced the brewery’s first pilsner in 1842. The brewing world was stunned by the new beer, even more so when it was served in the avant-garde drinking vessels of the day—glass. Eventually, brewers all over Europe produced a competitive beer—export in Dortmund, helles in Munich, and pils all over Germany. Today, breweries in virtually every corner of the world make a version based at least loosely on the original pilsner.