A
pilsener (also
pilsner or simply
pils) is a type of
pale lagerPale lager is a very pale to golden-coloured beer with a well attenuated body and noble hop bitterness. The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid 19th century when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brewing techniques back to the Spaten Brewery in Germany and applied it to existing...
beer. It takes its name from being developed in the 19th century in the city of Pilsen, Bohemia (Plzeň in the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
).
Until the mid-1840s, most Bohemian beers were top-
fermentedFermentation in food processing typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. A more restricted definition of fermentation is the chemical conversion of sugars into ethanol...
, dark and cloudy. The taste and standards of quality often varied widely, and in 1838, consumers dumped whole barrels to show their dissatisfaction.
A
pilsener (also
pilsner or simply
pils) is a type of
pale lagerPale lager is a very pale to golden-coloured beer with a well attenuated body and noble hop bitterness. The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid 19th century when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brewing techniques back to the Spaten Brewery in Germany and applied it to existing...
beer. It takes its name from being developed in the 19th century in the city of Pilsen, Bohemia (Plzeň in the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
).
Origin
Until the mid-1840s, most Bohemian beers were top-
fermentedFermentation in food processing typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. A more restricted definition of fermentation is the chemical conversion of sugars into ethanol...
, dark and cloudy. The taste and standards of quality often varied widely, and in 1838, consumers dumped whole barrels to show their dissatisfaction. The officials of Pilsen founded a city owned brewery in 1839, called (Citizens' Brewery - now Plzeňský Prazdroj), brewing beer according to the
BavariaBavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest state of Germany by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
n style of brewing. Bavarian brewers had begun experiments with the storage of beer in cool
caveA cave or cavern is a natural underground void large enough for a human to enter. Some people suggest that the term cave should only apply to cavities that have some part that does not receive daylight; however, in popular usage, the term includes smaller spaces like sea caves, rock shelters, and...
s using bottom-fermenting
yeastYeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with about 1,500 species currently described; they dominate fungal diversity in the oceans. Most reproduce asexually by budding, although a few do so by binary fission...
s, which improved the beer's clarity, flavour, and shelf-life. Most of this research benefited from the knowledge already expounded on in a
GermanGerman is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
book (printed since 1794, in
CzechCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. Czech is similar to and mutually intelligible with Slovak and, to a lesser extent, to Polish and Sorbian. - Official status :Czech is widely...
since 1801), written by František Ondřej Poupě (1753–1805) from
BrnoBrno is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, located in the southeast of the country. It was founded in 1243, although the area had been settled since the 5th century. As of August 2009 the population is 404,887...
.
The
Bürger BrauereiPlzeňský Prazdroj, a. s. is a brewery in Plzeň, the Bohemian city which is known as the birthplace of the Pilsener beer style in general, and for Pilsner Urquell, since 1898 the name of the main product of this brewery...
recruited the Bavarian brewer
Josef GrollJosef Groll was a Bavarian brewer, best known for his invention of Pilsener beer....
(1813 – 1887) who, using new techniques and the newly available paler
maltMalting is a process applied to cereal grains, in which the grains are made to germinate by soaking in water and are then quickly halted from germinating further by drying/heating with hot air. Thus, malting is a combination of two processes: the sprouting process and the kiln-drying process...
s, presented his first batch of modern pilsener on 5 October 1842. The combination of pale colour from the new malts, Pilsen's remarkably soft water, Saaz noble hops from nearby Saaz (since 1918
ŽatecŽatec is an old town in the Czech Republic, in Louny District, Ústí nad Labem Region. It has a population of 19,813 .The earliest historical reference to Sacz is in the Latin chronicle of Thietmar of Merseburg of 1004. During the 11th century it belonged to the Vršovci - a powerful Czech...
) and Bavarian-style lagering produced a clear, golden beer which was regarded as a sensation.
Improving transport and communications also meant that this new beer was soon available throughout
Central EuropeCentral Europe is the region lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. The term and widespread interest in the region itself came back into fashion after the end of the Cold War, which, along with the Iron Curtain, had divided Europe politically into East and West,...
, and the style of brewing was soon widely imitated. In 1859, “Pilsner Bier” was registered as a brand name at the Chamber of Commerce and Trade in Pilsen. In 1898, the
Pilsner UrquellPilsner Urquell is a bottom-fermented beer produced since 1842 in Pilsen, Bohemia...
trade mark was created to put emphasis on being the original brewery.
Modern pilseners
The introduction to Germany of modern refrigeration by
Carl von LindeProfessor Doctor Carl Paul Gottfried von Linde was a German engineer who developed refrigeration and gas separation technologies...
in the late 19th century removed the need for caves in which to store the beer and thus allowed the brewing of bottom-fermenting beer in many places which had been unable to do so before. However, even until recently the
Pilsner UrquellPilsner Urquell is a bottom-fermented beer produced since 1842 in Pilsen, Bohemia...
brewery still fermented its beer using open
barrelA barrel or cask is a hollow conical container, traditionally made of vertical wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. Traditionally, the barrel was a standard size of measure referring to a set capacity or weight of a given commodity. For example, a beer barrel was originally a 36...
s in the cellars underneath their brewery. This technology was changed in 1993 with the use of large cylindrical tanks; however, small samples are still brewed in a traditional way for taste comparisons. Pilsner also has the unique claim to being "the world's first golden beer".
A modern pilsener has a very light, clear colour from pale to golden yellow, and a distinct hop aroma and flavour. Czech pilseners tend toward a lighter flavour (good examples being
Pilsner UrquellPilsner Urquell is a bottom-fermented beer produced since 1842 in Pilsen, Bohemia...
and
StaropramenStaropramen Brewery is the second largest brewery in the Czech Republic, situated in the Smíchov district of Prague. It was founded in 1869 and the brand name Staropramen, literally meaning “old spring,” was registered in 1911...
), while those in a German style can be more bitter (particularly in the north, e.g.
JeverJever is a German beer brand, named after the town of Jever where it is brewed. It has been brewed by the "Friesisches Brauhaus zu Jever" since 1848.-History:...
) or even "earthy" in flavour. Distinctive examples of German pilseners are Aktienbrauerei Kaufbeuren Jubiläums Pils,
AugustinerAugustiner Bräu is a brewery located in Munich, Germany. Established in 1328, it is Munich's oldest still independent brewery and produces some of Munich's most popular brands of beer.-History:The origins of the Augustiner brewery date back to the year 1294...
Pils,
Beck'sBeck's Brewery is a brewery in the north German city of Bremen. Owned by local families until February 2002, it was then sold to Interbrew for 1.8 billion euros. The brewery was formed under the name Kaiserbrauerei Beck & May o.H.G. on 27 June 1873 by Lüder Rutenberg , Heinrich Beck, and Thomas May...
,
BitburgerBitburger brewery is a large German brewery founded in 1817 by Johann Wallenborn. It is the market leader in Germany with annual sales of 4.12 million hectolitres, the most well known product being Bitburger Premium Pils....
,
FlensburgerFlensburger Brauerei is a brewery located in Flensburg in the Bundesland of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is one of the last country-wide operating breweries not being part of a larger brewery group. The company was founded on September 6th, 1888 by five citizens of Flensburg...
Pilsener Fürstenberg,
HenningerHenninger Brewery was a notable brewery in Frankfurt, Germany. Henninger traces its roots to 1655 in Eberhard Stein's brew house. It is now owned by the Radeberger Group and still exists as a brand...
's Kaiser Pilsner,
HolstenHolsten Brewery is a brewing company founded in 1518 in what is now Hamburg's Altona-Nord quarter. The group now has seven breweries in Germany. Its nationally distributed premium brand is the pale lager Holsten Pilsener...
, König Pilsner,
KönigsbacherKönigsbacher is a brewery in Koblenz, in the Rhineland-Palatinate state of Germany. Since its foundation in 1689, it has a tradition of brewing beer in the Old Brewery in the historic center of Koblenz...
Pilsener,
KrombacherKrombacher Brauerei is one of the largest privately owned breweries in Germany.- History :The Krombacher brand was founded in 1803 by Bernhard Schadeberg and has continued to be in the hands of the Schadeberg family for generations.- Location :...
, Radeberger, Schwelm's Schwelmer Pils,
VeltinsBrauerei C & A Veltins is a brewery in the west German city of Meschede-Grevenstein.The small guesthouse brewery of Franz Kramer opened its simple wooden gates in 1824. Clemens Veltins took over the brewery in 1852. The new name, Brauerei C & A Veltins, came from the twins Carl and Anton Veltins...
, Warsteiner, Wurzburger, and
WernesgrünerThe Wernesgrüner Brewery or Wernesgrüner Brauerei GmbH is a brewery in Steinberg-Wernesgrün, Saxony, Germany.The brewery was founded in 1436 when the brothers Schorer acquired the rights to brew and open a tavern. After establishing property for bottling they soon began brewing on what would...
. On the other hand, Dutch (
AmstelAmstel Brewery is a Dutch brewery founded in 1870 on the Mauritskade in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. It was taken over by Heineken International in 1968, and the brewing plant closed down in 1982, with production moving to the main Heineken plant at Zoeterwoude.-History:The brewery was founded on...
, Heineken) and Belgian pilseners (
JupilerPiedboeuf Brewery is a brewery based in Jupille-sur-Meuse, Belgium. It is owned by InBev. The main brand is Jupiler, the most popular beer in Belgium.-Jupiler:...
,
Stella ArtoisStella Artois is a 5% ABV lager first brewed in Leuven, Belgium, in 1926 as a Christmas brew, and named Stella after the Latin for "star"....
) have a slight sweet taste.
Pilseners as a marketing category
A pilsener is generally regarded as different from other
pale lagerPale lager is a very pale to golden-coloured beer with a well attenuated body and noble hop bitterness. The brewing process for this beer developed in the mid 19th century when Gabriel Sedlmayr took pale ale brewing techniques back to the Spaten Brewery in Germany and applied it to existing...
s by a more prominent hop character, particularly from the use of Saaz noble
hopsHops are the female flower clusters, commonly called cones or strobiles, of the hop plant . The hop is part of the family Cannabaceae, which also includes the genus Cannabis . They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, though hops are also used for various purposes in other...
. While pilsener is best defined in terms of its characteristics and heritage, the term is also used by some brewers (particularly in North America) to indicate their "premium" beer, whether or not it has a particular hop character.
See also
- American-style lager
American-style lager beer is a common variety of beer, a type of pale lager, traditionally made and consumed in North America. It derives ultimately from the Czech Pilsner, but is characterized by a much lighter color and body and the frequent use of rice or corn as adjuncts...
- Belgian beer
Beer in Belgium varies from the popular pale lager to lambic beer and Flemish red. Evidence of brewing in Belgium dates from the Middle Ages....
- Czech beer
Beer in the Czech Republic has a long and important history. The first brewery is known to have existed in 1118. The city of Brno had the right to brew beer from the 12th century, and the two cities most associated with Czech beer, Plzeň and České Budějovice , had breweries in the 13th...
- German beer
Beer in Germany is a major part of German culture. There are around 1,300 breweries in Germany, more than in any other country except the United States which has 1,500...
- Pacífico
Cerveza Pacífico Clara is a Mexican pilsner-style beer. It was first brewed in 1900 when three Germans opened a brewery, the Cerveceria del Pacífico in Mazatlán. Cerveza Pacifico is named so because the Pacifico brewery is located in the Pacific Ocean port city of Mazatlán, in the state of...
, a Mexican pilsener-style beer
External links