One of the places in Prague that beer bloggers praise, is
Pivovarský Klub. I haven't had time to take a look at the beer club until this year. Pivovarský Klub is the sister pub of Pivarský Dům in the city centre. It is placed in Křižiková street, not far from the Florenc metro and bus terminal.
Pivovarský Klub is dedicated to beers, and it shows. On the shelves there are dozens of beer bottles and branded glasses, and old beer placards and signs are all over the place. You can also find beer kettles in the restaurant, which in all makes for a nice environment.
There are plenty of beers and beer styles to be found at Pivovarský Klub. Name a Czech brewery that bottles its beers, and they most certainly sell it at Pivovarský Klub together with loads of foreign beers. You can buy beers to enjoy at the restaurant or to take away.
But there are even more beers than this. They also sell draught beers, and at any time there are six different taps in Pivovarský Klub. Usually they sell Czech beers not found elsewhere in Prague, so visiting Pivovarský Klub will give the visitors a possiblity to drink something new. Now and then also foreign beers are available. On my last visit, they for instance sold the Schlenkerla rauchbier from tap.
The taps are decorated by numbers in brass. Each number is referenced over the bar with names of the beers being tapped at the moment. Usually you should find Pivovarský Klub's own special lager, Štěpán Světlý Ležák, on one of the taps. This beer is made especially for this restaurant and Pivarský Dům.
The food I have tasted at Pivovarský Klub has been very good, but I have been mostly interested in the beers on my visits. The first time around I had the excellent Štěpán lager. I never did any tasting notes while drinking it, because I knew I was coming back. That was a shame, as they never had the beer on my later visits. I remember Štěpán to be a tasty lager beer that I would love to find here in Norway as well.
On my last visit I tried the Regent Prezident. This is an unfiltered 14° lager which in the glass had a yellow and unclear look. There was a lot of yeast in the nose, but in the mouth the yeast was joined by sweetness and some melon. The finish was somewhat bitter, but still pleasant. A really good beer!
Pivovarský Klub is one of the places in Prague I will visit every time I am in the Czech capital. The great selection in beers (both on tap and in bottles) and a great smoke free atmosphere makes this place a must.
Pivovarský Klub was visited on my recent visit to Prague. A beautiful April day I once again took the metro to Florenc before walking the last metres to Pivovarský klub in Křižíkova street. The mission was to check out some of the beers on tap and especially to see if the house beer Štěpán still was not in its best shape.
Pivovarský Klub is a special place for beer lovers. With loads of bottled beers for sale and six draught beers there is always something to choose from. I went for a small glass of Štěpán first. Once again it was a disappointment. The interesting and good tasting beer from last Spring was still as boring as it was on my visit in December. There were nearly no taste nor aromas from it.
On the five other taps I could choose between Herold Weizen, Telčský Zachariáš 14° pale lager, Opat's olive beer, Strakonický Dudák dark lager and another house beer: Jarni Special 14° Märzen.
I chose the dark lager. Strakonický Dudák was nearly black with a nose of coffee. In the mouth it was sweet, and it nearly felt like a malzbier with some coffee in the finish. I liked it, but I feel there are many better dark lagers in the Czech Republic than this. After half a glass I was bored of the beer.
Perhaps I chose the wrong beers from the Pivovarský Klub this time? I felt a little bit disappointed from the visit. Perhaps I should rather have gone to Zlý Časy, U Prince Miroslava or Prague Beer Museum? These pubs have a better selection in draught beers at the moment and could be more interesting for a beer visitor to Prague. But I know will be back to Pivovarský Klub. The excellent service makes up for the beers this time around.
