Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, was one of my favorite cities during our trip to Europe visiting 10 countries. And while in Prague, one of the places that I enjoyed the most was the Czech Beer Museum. I like beer and I like visiting museums. So what better way to soak in the city’s beer culture than to visit a place that explains Czech beer history and brewing traditions?
The Czechs pride themselves on being the number one drinkers in the world. The country is known for producing beer brands such as Pilsner Urquell, Budweiser Budvar (not to be confused with the American-brewed Budweiser), Staropramen, Starobrno, Krušovice and many others.
The Czech Beer Museum is located in Prague’s historic quarter, near other top attractions like the Jewish Quarter and Prague Astronomical Clock (the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still in operation), so it’s easy to visit if you’re already sightseeing in the area.
Initially, I pinned another “Prague Beer Museum” which turned out to be just a restaurant/pub with “museum” in its name, and we made a few wrong turns around down the winding alleys to get there, but eventually found the right Beer Museum with the help of Google Maps.
The Czech Beer Museum, which opened in 2014, dubs itself the “biggest and only beer museum in Prague,” with three stories that delve into the history of beer and what makes Czech beer great.
So if you’re a beer geek, you’ll enjoy the history aspect. But it’s not just a museum. There are interactive elements, including a tasting room in an atmospheric cellar, and you can enjoy 3 Czech beers for the ticket price, so it’s like you get to visit a bar and museum in one.
After paying for entry tickets (walk-ins are allowed), the tour starts with an orientation and welcome beer poured by the brewmaster in the lobby.
There’s an al fresco area with beer posters where you can sit and enjoy your first drink. Heading into the museum, the first room displays an amazing display of beer bottles from all over the Czech Republic on one wall and infographics on how much beer is consumed per country.
From here, we headed upstairs to the main displays to learn about the history of local brewing from the 10th-century to the golden age of beer. There was a lot of beer history to go through from model displays of historical artifacts, video presentations, and more.
A brewery model illustrates how malt is made and what is done with the hops. In some sections, you can experience the real smell of hops and barley. It was fascinating to read about different aspects of brewing history.
For instance, did you know witchcraft and beer have close ties and that the original beer brewers were women? Throughout ancient history and during Medieval times in Europe, brewing beer was considered women’s work and an extension of their household duties. Everyone (including children) drank weak ale brewed at home. Women with no families started selling ales to townsfolk for business and eventually became known as Brewsters or Ale Wives.
However, during the religious movement in the early 16th century which condemned witchcraft, male brewers saw this as an opportunity to reduce their competition in the beer trade and actively demonized women who brewed beer. Male brewers accused female brewers of being witches and somehow the image of women with cauldrons brewing up potions instead of booze took hold and have endured. To this day, beer brewing is a male-dominated industry and major beer companies often portray beer as a drink for men despite its origins.
After the history lesson, we descended into the dimly lit beer cellar, for more beer drinking. While the museum itself looks very modern, the lowest section is housed in a beautiful 13th-century cellar, that looks like a dungeon straight out of medieval times.
We got to pour beers from an automatic machine in the adjoining Beer Chapel and enjoyed another two Czech beers here. The first was Demon Lobkowicz, a semi dark lager beer (ABV: 5.20%) that’s prepared according to “old monastic recipes of the Munich area dating back to 1420. This had a rich and balanced flavor profile, and slightly sweet taste with pleasant malty aroma. The second beer was Cerna Hora Boruvka, a semi dark lager brewed with blueberries (ABV: 4.40%) and Saaz hops. This was refreshing and sweet because of the berry taste.
There were only a few visitors to the museum when we dropped by, so it was quiet and peaceful. I felt like I was teleported back in time to a tavern in House of the Dragons or Game of Thrones, minus all the rowdy peasants and smallfolk.
From medieval times, we jumped forward a couple of centuries to a 1920s Communist-era themed pub in an adjoining hall. Parts of the cellar were converted to resemble what pubs looked like before the Velvet Revolution, complete with life-sized mannequins.
The pub is a time capsule of how Czechoslovakia looked like before it was split into two countries (the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic).
There was an optional experience to produce an original beer souvenir and design a customized beer label, which we skipped, content with the whole museum experience.
If you‘re a fan of beer and happen to be in Prague, you should definitely check out their Beer Museum. I enjoyed taking the time to soak in the beer culture here.
I liked the museum’s flow and layout, all the interesting trivia and history on beer, and the vibe in the underground bars. The museum was not overwhelming or too crowded like some other museums we visited in Europe, and provided a quiet place for day drinking. We enjoyed going around, so I say it’s well worth it!
Location
Beer Museum, Husova 21, 110 00 Staré Město, Czechia. Open from Monday to Sunday 10:30 am– 8:30 pm. Last entry is at 7:15 pm.
- Ticket prices: 360 CZK or 15 euros for regular tickets inclusive of museum tour and 3 beers each (roughly Php 881). Students: 260 CZK
- Website: http://beermuseum.cz/?lang=en