Food & Beer Culture

What do people eat with beer in the Giant Mountains? One of the region's best-known dishes is Kyselo, a tangy soup made from sourdough, potatoes, mushrooms, and egg. It pairs well with a pale, lightly hopped beer, since its acidity shouldn't be overwhelmed by bitterness.

Bramboráky, Czech potato pancakes with garlic and marjoram, are a popular pub dish. Crispy and rich, they call for a beer with some carbonation to refresh the palate, such as a lager or a wheat beer.

The porter shows its strength with sweets. In Pardubice, the gingerbread pastry Pardubický perník is well known, a honey cake that pairs beautifully with a dark, malt-sweet beer. Cheese or chocolate also complement such a robust beer.

The word for pub in Czech is hospoda. There, the half-liter glass, known as půllitr, is the standard measure, and the next round is often brought without even being asked. At Bernard in Humpolec, a visitor center has offered brewery tours since June 2022.

In 1974, future president Václav Havel worked as a laborer at the Trutnov brewery. The experience inspired his play Audience, set in a brewery, which portrays the beer culture of the era with both realism and sharp irony.

Game and mushrooms, common in the mountains, pair especially well with the dark lager. Its roasted notes echo the flavors of pan gravy and wild mushrooms while remaining soft on the palate. The pale wheat beer, meanwhile, is better suited to an afternoon drink and lighter fare.