I promised that I’d teach everyone why Czechoslovakia was synonymous with Pilsner in the video metadata. Let’s see if I can actually do that…
I personally feel that there are way too many vowels in the word “pilsner” for the style to have originated there. Doing a little research… well… wrong about that. The style originated in the city of Plzen. See? One vowel. I knew it was something. So we got the name. What else is there to this beer…
The style was created in 1839 (The water in the Czech Republic is soft, which will help lighter-bodied styles). By 1860, it was being copied in other countries. It’s a lager (lager means “storage”), which means that it needs special, low temperature storage for the yeast to work properly). It seems like the only laws about Pilsners are that they are required to Saaz hops (hop varietal local to the city), spring water, and are lagers.
When it boils down to it (get it?) there are only two types of beer: lager and ale. Lagers ferment in cold temperatures and usually have bottom-fermenting yeast, ales ferment in warm temperatures and usually have top-fermenting yeast (the top/bottom refers to where the yeast sits within the beer when it’s working).
And that’s your beer lesson for the day.
Just The Facts
Appearance: Clear gold
Smell: Grassy, floral sweetness
Taste: Malty, mild hops, sweet corn
Mouthfeel: Light Bodied
Drinkability: Straight session beer
If you like this, you might like:
Pilsners, Czech Pilsner by Bohemian Brewery
Where to find them online
