Plum or coffee? Try these surprising Czech beer flavors

Beer purists, look away. 

Flavored beer is becoming the hottest trend in craft brewing in the Czech Republic. From a lambic that tastes like champagne to sour coffee beer, Czech brewers offer a wide range of flavors crafted to stimulate the senses. 

According to beer sommelier ​​Marcela Titzlová, the flavored beer trend is rooted in the "less alcohol, more flavor," principle. She believes beer enthusiasts these days are seeking quality, not quantity, as well as new flavors and experiences.

"Just by looking at rising prices, we can assume that people will be more selective about what they spend on," says Titzlová. "Beers with a lower percentage of alcohol, but with an emphasis on interesting, well-balanced bitterness, have been a worldwide trend for some time."

Novelty beers brewed by breweries in the last year range in alcohol content from 4.4 to five percent.

Pilsner Urquell's experimental brewery Proud is a pioneer in the area of innovative flavors. The brewery recently released several editions of craft beer in unexpected flavor combinations that make for delightful summer drinking.

Their seasonal limited edition Kisseláč Svestka (sour plum) is a light beer that incorporates a plum base from the Czech family company Ovocňák.

"The aroma is fresh with a hint of plums or plum jam. After drinking, a pleasant acidity is noticeable, which does not distort the face, but on the contrary, allows the delicate sour character and malt base to stand out," says brewer Lenka Straková.

In addition to plum-flavored beer, Proud recently introduced an unlikely pairing with its Coffee Sour IPA. Rich notes of coffee from The Miners roastery create "an easy-to-drink beer with a distinct fruity aroma, created by a combination of hops and roasted coffee added during fermentation."

Another zingy new flavor, Pepper Your Gose, is made with green freeze-dried Kampot pepper, salt flower from Kampot, and a pinch of rosemary. The pepper is supplied by Czech artistans pepper.field.

Jitka Ilčíková from Mikulov has started producing ales under the Wild Creatures label, including a beer that tastes like champagne. The barrel-aged Cuvée 2019 has an unusual grape flavor and is wild-fermented like a Belgian lambic. Sister brewer Raven is already known for edgy flavors like upside-down cake and lemon iced tea.

Although the microbrewery boom has recently slowed down in Czechia, experts say brewers will continue to satisfy the demand for novelty beer with all kinds of specials. 

"Brewers will continue to invent more and more styles or copy world trends that are not here. Flavored sour beers, are now popular," says the head of the Czech-Moravian Union of Microbreweries Michal Voldřich.

To try the beers mentioned in this article, you can order from Raven's e-shop or visit these Prague pubs. Proud also sells bottles through its e-shop or check out its online beer finder. Or head to Pilsen and sample from the source: You can visit both Raven and Proud breweries there.

A day trip to Pilsen from Prague should also include a visit to one of the largest pubs in the Czech Republic – Pilsen's Hospoda Na Spilce, which reopened again in July after more than two years as well as the newly opened special exhibition devoted to 180 years of Pilsner Urquell in the Brewery Museum.