The new collective brewery was called the Bürgerbrauerei – German for citizens’ brewery or municipal brewery. In 1839, realizing that the most renowned beers at the time were made in Bavaria, the town hired two Bavarians: a builder/architect named Martin Stelzer and a head brewer, Josef Groll. The citizens decided to start from scratch, building a new state-of-the-art brewery with the latest technology and hiring a new brewer.

Josef Groll first unveiled his Pilsner beer to the citizens of Pilsen in October 1842. In Pilsen, the quality reached a nadir and the drinking citizens revolted, pouring 36 kegs of city beer into the streets in front of city hall. ( READ: The New England Style IPA is The Anti-IPA) How the Pilsner Beer Style DevelopedĪt the start of the 19th century, the quality of beer in Europe was poor and standards varied widely. The style is so special to him, he originally created Noble Pils as a gift for his daughter’s wedding. “Pilsners represent the high art of brewing, and when they’re done right, are a masterpiece much like Mona Lisa’s smile.” This style’s key attributes – body, sweetness, bitterness and spiciness – are all going to be there in perfect harmony with no one flavor overwhelming the others,” he also says. Jim Koch, founder and brewer at Boston Beer, gives a more poetic description: “A Pilsner, when brewed right, is exquisitely balanced. They have an alcohol by volume level of 4.2-5.8 percent and generally are quite sessionable.īoston Beer Founder Jim Koch says, “Pilsners represent the high art of brewing.” (Credit: Boston Beer Co.) Classic Pilsners are made with light-colored Pilsner malt, Saaz and Hallertau noble hops, and a bottom fermenting Pilsner yeast. They are seductively complex, refreshing and easy to drink. Among the most notable was the evolution of new kilning techniques - which had recently been developed in Britain - for making lightly colored malt and the creation of new lager yeasts.Ĭzech Pilsners are pale golden in color with considerable but balanced malt and hop character. A confluence of circumstances paved the way for a brewer in Czechoslovakia to develop the first crisp, clean, pale Pilsner lager.

What is a Pilsner?Įver since beer was first being brewed it was a dark, murky liquid, often consumed through straws to get below the floating sediment. The beer style would go on to conquer the world, forever changing the way drinkers view beer.

That’s exactly what happened in, the region now known as Pilsen, Czech Republic, in 1839 – and citizens did something dramatic, leading to creation of the first Pilsner beer. Many of us probably have had a few beers we didn’t like. Credit: How the Pilsner Beer Style Conquered the World October 11, 2017

Pilsner beer meaning