Main Square, Plzeň. July 2019
Beer Hajj
Pilsner (also pilsener or simply pils) is a type of pale lager. It takes its name from the Bohemian city of Plzeň (German: Pilsen), where the world's first pale lager (now known as Pilsner Urquell) was produced in 1842 by Pilsner Urquell Brewery.
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The city of Plzeň was granted brewing rights in 1307, but until the mid-1840s, most Bohemian beers were top-fermented. Originally called in German: Bürger-Brauerei Pilsen, it is now known as Pilsner Urquell Brewery. It was here they began to brew beer in the Bavarian style.
(Wikipedia)
In the days before the craft beer renaissance in North America (there had always been craft beer in Europe), I became fascinated with the idea that most of the American beers that I grew up drinking were "pilsner". Lo and behold, Pilsen was actually the place where it all started!
I was slightly obsessed with visiting that place of beer history much to MAP's frustration on my visits to Germany. The Czech Republic was just a stone's throw from Bavaria. How could we NOT go? Bluntly, put, then Czechoslovakia was recovering from its years behind the Iron Curtain and was desperately poor. Car theft was a real concern, especially driving a German vehicle on the then poor roads connecting Germany and Pilsen (in the far west of the country). No matter how much I pleaded, M remained steadfast, "No." Good call on his part, I must say.
Fast forward a couple of decades and the now Czech Republic was a prosperous country that tourists were flocking to. It was an EU and Schengen member. I easily hopped on a train from Vienna and went to Prague for several days. First on my list was to visit Pilsen - I am glad I waited. With EU funds and new prosperity, little Pilsen had cleaned up its beautiful town square and was cashing in on the fame of its beer. The brewery tour (I didn't have time - but I got the t-shirt) was well-known. Had I come when I originally planned, I am not sure I would have had the same positive view of Pilsen as I do now. In this case, the delay was most welcome.
I walked around the town's lovely square and sat down at one of the many restaurants and had lunch with the famous local suds. This was a huge moment on my bucket list. Years before I had drunk "budvar" (the parent of Budweiser in the USA) beer for 25 cents on the main square of Prague and thought it amazing [see: Beijing to Athens]. On the trip to Pilsen, however, I was in the birthplace of pilsner beer itself -wow! My beer pilgrimage had come to fruition. I sat looking out over the very German town square and its church drinking beer and feeling very satisfied.
Sometimes expectations are met - not always, but when they are on sunny July days in Bohemia with frosty-mugged beer, the world feels just about right.