Water & Soil

The river shapes the landscape. The Ohře, known in German as the Eger, flows through northwest Bohemia and links the hop fields to the town of Žatec. It has carved out a broad, flat valley where hops grow with ease, and where roads, bridges, and trade routes have developed over the centuries.

A hop plant is thirsty. In a single summer it climbs several metres upward, and for that it needs evenly moist, but never waterlogged, soil. The land around Žatec has long been known for exactly this, and hop cultivation has reshaped the landscape to suit its needs: long rows, paths running between them, and small farmsteads scattered among the fields.

One thing is certain: the soils and climate together create what experts call terroir — the influence of place on the resulting product. Saaz hops are therefore said to taste different from the very same variety grown in a distant field. The PDO is built precisely on this idea, which is why the municipalities within the designated area are so firmly fixed in the registration.

As for brewing water, today almost every brewery treats it, regardless of where it's located. Water is softened, filtered, or has salts added deliberately until the recipe comes together just right. A phrase like "the water makes the style" describes the past more than the present. The contribution of the Žatec area lies above all in the hops, not in the water.

Harvested hops are stored cool, dry, and dark. Large warehouses in Žatec once served exactly this purpose. Heat and light cause hops to age quickly, stripping their aroma and leaving an unpleasant cheesy note. How coolly and dryly hops are stored is part of the craft knowledge for which the town became known.