I decided to spend the down time in between bouts of beer tasting to research the history of beer, and it is an interesting tale!
The ancient Mesopotamians are often touted as bringing beer to the world, but it is the Czechs that invented lager as we know it today.
It began in 1842 with a riot in the West Bohemian city of Plzen (now known as Pilsen). Burghers, unhappy at being poured crap beer yet again, went on a rampage and destroyed all the beer barrels in the town. The town’s mayor, showing a reasonable understanding of the human psyche, gathered together the town’s smartest, and they came up with a more reliable process of brewing known as bottom fermentation. The technique spread quickly, and even now many Europeans still ask for a ‘pils’ when ordering a lager.
Comments
5 responses to “A (very) short history of beer”
Excellent stuff on your trip, although it seems to stop suddenly. Czech Republic is on the long list of countries we’ll be visiting later this year. Will take a look at a few places you mention. Thanks!
Tried Staropramen a while back but still more expensive than the local stuff here as it probably would be with transport costs. If it was somewhere near pricewise I’d give it a go.
Tui FTW!!!
TUI FTW!!!
yeah right…………
Go the Czechs!!!!