Beer of the Week - Pilsner Urquell
Posted by Greg Clow in beer, beverages on October 9, 2007 at 12:29 pm
This past weekend saw a notable anniversary in the world of beer. It marked 165 years since a particular beer was first brewed in a town in Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) called Plzen, a beer which in turn led to the creation of roughly 90% of the beer that is sold around the world today.
That beer, in case it’s not obvious from the subject above and photo to the right, was - and still is - Pilsner Urquell. And despite the fact that it’s now owned by a massive multinational brewing conglomerate using methods and processes that weren’t even dreamt about in 1842, it’s still considered a benchmark in the Pilsner style that it spawned.
In the years before the creation of Pilsner Urquell (which translates to “Pilsner from the source”), the beers being brewed around the world were generally dark in colour due to the fact that the roasting of malt was an inexact science; murky in appearance due to the lack of filtering; and in most cases, ales, since lack of refrigeration made it difficult to brew using bottom-fermenting lager yeasts which require cooler temperatures to do their job.
However, brewers in Bavaria and other nearby European states known for their lagers had started to master new methods that allowed them greater control over the roasting of malt, and had also developed better filtering techniques that led to clearer, vibrant looking beers. The first of these new beers to gain some popularity was an reddish-amber lager created by Viennese brewer Anton Dreher sometime around 1840. This style of beer became known as Vienna lager, and it was a quick success.
In Bohemia, meanwhile, the residents of Plzen were pissed off about the poor quality of the dark, murky ale that was available to them, and they started dumping barrels of it in the town square to make their point. This lead the town leaders to build a new brewery, and then hire a Bavarian brewer named Josef Groll to create a new beer for them. By refining roasting techniques even further to produce a light golden malt, he was in turn able to create a bright gold lager unlike any other.
Groll brewed the first batch of his new beer on October 5th, 1842, and when it became available to the drinkers of Plzen several weeks later, it was an instant hit. Groll, however, was reportedly quite difficult to deal with, and when his contract with the city expired in 1845, it was not renewed. He returned to Vilshofen, the Bavarian town where he was born, and soon took over his father’s brewery. He remained there until his death in 1887, which fittingly took place while drinking a beer in his local pub.
(Oh, and as for Dreher’s Vienna lager - while it hung around for a while, it was eventually eclipsed by the popularity of Pilsner, and is now quite a rare style, although it is oddly popular in Mexico.)
Moving forward 165 years, things have changed somewhat for the original Pilsner. It’s been owned by international brewing giant SABMiller since 2000, and is no longer fermented in the traditional oak vessels but rather in modern stainless steel, a change that was made roughly 15 years ago. Production of the beer has also been expanded by brewing some in another SABMiller-owned facility in Poland.
Moves like this have angered purists, but to me, what’s important is whether or not the beer is any good. And to my palate, Pilsner Urquell is still a fantastic and refreshing beer. It has the trademark vibrant golden colour with a strong white head, floral and herbal Saaz hops on the nose, and a soft and full flavour with sweet malt and a perfectly bitter finish.
Pilsner Urquell may no longer be the only Pilsner in the world, and it may not even the best one (based on the dozens I’ve tried, that title would have to go to Prima Pils from Pennsylania’s Victory Brewing). But it’s still the original, and still very deserving of it’s well-earned reputation.
October 10th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
You tried dozen of beers and You like Prima Pils from Pennsylvania… in Czech Republic there are more than 170 Brewery, so U must try other hundreds beer and not “only” a dozen… to say what is better or you prefere!
You can’t compare Pilsner with Prima… It’s like to compare a Czech Budweiser and American Budweiser…, a lot of American prefer light beer with not so much taste (I call It water-beer or girls-beer), I think You are one of that! Anyway can’t compare Pilsner made with the best and more expensive hops in the world, with a beer PRIMA from Pennsylvania made with a chines hops, the style tends to remind me of the low quality, mass-market American beers!
October 10th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
Alex…
Thank you for your comment, although I’m afraid you’re way off base with some of your statements.
First of all, when I said “based on the dozens I’ve tried”, I meant that I have tried dozens of traditional-style Pilsners. (And I’m not counting so-called “Pilsners” like Bud and Blue in that list - those are not real Pilsners at all.) The number of different beers in total that I’ve tried is much, much higher than that - around 1900 since I started keeping notes back in 2002, and even more before that. So I think I have the right to offer an opinion.
As for Prima Pils - you’ve obviously never tried it if you claim that it uses Chinese hops and tastes like “low quality, mass-market American beers”. If you check out the Prima Pils page on the Victory Brewing website - http://www.victorybeer.com/pils.html - you’ll find out that it is brewed using 2 row German pilsner malt and German and Czech whole flower hops. It is a traditional, craft-brewed Pilsner which is considered to be one of the best in the world by many who have tried it, including well-regarded beer writers like Stephen Beaumont.
Frankly, I think you’re allowing the old “all American beer is crap!” assumptions to colour your judgement of a beer that you’ve never even tried, which just proves that you know very little about the American craft brewing scene. Some of the best beer in the world is coming out of the United States right now, ranging from traditional to experimental styles.
That being said, I’m sure that there is are Pilsners out there that I might enjoy more than Prima Pils if/when I get a chance to try them. Same goes for any other beer style. I can only judge my personal favourites based on what I’ve tried so far, but I’m always willing to change those favourites when something new comes along. That’s why I keep trying new beers all the time. And where those beers happen to be brewed doesn’t matter to me - what’s important is how much I enjoy them.
October 13th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Well put Greg, Im not really sure what beer you’v been drinking alex, or what your basing your statements on, but you are quite off. I would go and tell you why you are off, but Gred did a fantastic job of it allready.
Cheers
October 13th, 2007 at 10:42 pm
Hi,
reading in internet most import websites:
Pilsner Urquell
Urquell means “original source,” and, in essence, the moniker was added to protect the originator of the style. The worldwide imitators may be good in their own right, but Urquell is distinctive. The hop aroma is soft, flowery and round. The mouthfeel is full, the flavor is full of hops and malt with a slight sweetness. At about 40 international bittering units (IBU), Urquell is bitter, but the soft water rinses the palate within seconds. Available on draft or in bottles, but nothing could compare to a fresh draw in Plzen. 4.4% alcohol by volume (ABV).
This sentece can explain about Pilsner:
”The worldwide imitators may be good in their own right, but Urquell is distinctive.”
I mean, I didn’t tried Prima Pilsner, like I didn’t tried a lot of Pilsner here…
But When You think at Champagne You think the first Dom Perignon… this is distinctive, Iknow too all aroung there can be good champagne… I know people have different taste and everybody is different… somebody like pizza Hut more than an italian pizza… somebody like a Corvette more than a Ferrari… etc… but there are legend and things that all over the world are regarded and prized (not only from beer writers like Stephen Beaumont, …I know a lot of this people take a lot of money from company to speak well)
and are awarded from actors, musician (Smetana etc…), writers (Kafka…), and artist ….to write a book of beers anyway they have to start from Pilsner Urquell…
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.
Pilsner is the mother…
After maybe We like parents… but We believe always in mom!!!
like this american wrote a book about beers…
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/92980
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:41 pm
Alex - nowhere in my article did I claim that Pilsner Urquell is not “original” or “distinctive”. I made it clear that it is, indeed, the original Pilsner, and is still a very good beer, and still one of the best examples of the style.
I just happen to find a couple of other Pilsners to be a bit more enjoyable to me. Perhaps it’s because they’re brewed in smaller batches (most of the ones I like better come from relatively small breweries), or perhaps it’s because they’re fresher due to not travelling as far to get to me.
But even if I enjoy other beers more, it doesn’t take away from my respect for Urquell as being a world classic.