The Plzeň factory that gave lager to the world

The Pilsner Urquell factory in Plzeň is to beer what Lord's is to cricket. What Gutenberg was to the printed book. What Naples is to the pizza. The Mecca of lager, as it were.

Because when it opened in 1842, it combined Czech and Bavarian brewing methods to produce what we now think of as lager - a type of beer which some say accounts for over 90% of all beer drunk in the world. They're very keen on keeping things traditional, and Pilsner Urquell is still made solely from water, barley, hops and yeast.

The factory's grand Jubilee Gates dominate the view as you walk from the train station to the historic centre. Inside the gates, the brewery's vast site feels more like a small town. The tour of the factory was rated the world's best of its type in 2024.

It's certainly a league above most brewery tours, which tend to be all the same: same ingredients, same tanks, same spiel, same tastings, same jokes. But Pilsner Urquell's has a characteristically Czech sophistication, with high production value videos and animations to enhance the experience. Plus the tour features a bus - yes, the site is too big to walk - and a chilly walk through a small part of the astounding 9km of tunnels that used to store barrels of the amber stuff.

And, of course, the chance to sample. And what you sample is a bit special, because it's the real raw stuff, unfiltered and unpasteurised, that doesn't transport well enough to enjoy anywhere but right here. And yes, it does taste rather special.

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