Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

(500 ml brown bottle). Typical pilsener golden colour, large frothy head. Lovely Saaz aroma, the flavour has sufficient malts to balance the irresistibly crisp hoppy bitterness. This is another evidence that pilseners / lagers from big breweries do NOT have to taste like ...nothing. A great refreshment beer from our friends in Brno!

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

(330 ml bottle, airborne from Praha/Prague). Reddish brown colour, deep ruby when held to the light. Very good and thick tan head, good lacing. Roasty and malty aroma, hints of coffee, caramel and toast. Roasted malty flavour, hints of brown sugar but not really sweet, dominant coffee-like bitterness. Difficult to tell how much of the bitterness is from the roasted malts and how much is from the hops. Extracts and artificial colouring, hmm?? This is a tasty brew anyway.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Rerate: 500 ml bottle, airborne from Praha/Prague, 5.0% ABV. Golden colour, large head disappears instantly, no lacing, bubbly. Some Saaz aroma, but not nearly as good as Starobrno or Staropramen. Flavour is rather malty for a pilsener, reasonable bitterness. Drinkable, but not my favourite pils. Original rating: I had this beer from a can in Norway, 4.5% ABV. The expiry date was 6 days ago, i.e. the production date was 1 year earlier, and the beer had not been stored cool at my retailer's. This must have impaired the quality, exactly how much I can't tell. A couple other raters had the same impression of the beer as I had, and they probably had a fresher can/bottle. Disappointment is the word,

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

(330 ml bottle, fresh from Praha/Prague). Golden colour, moderate head. Initially weak aroma, some alcoholic sweet and flowery notes come along. Flavour is quite malty for a pale lager, rather alcoholic but not unpleasant, warming mouthfeel. Not too sweet. OKish, but not great.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

A pilsener as good as pilseners get. Rerate: Had it from can this time, still the benchmark of a good pilsener. Only 4.4% now, but I remember (I think!) that the alcohol content was about 5.2% when I first had it (in Germany) many years ago?!

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

500 ml bottle, bought in Germany, named "Fürst von Louny", must be the same beer, but ABV is 5.4% - one rater has had one in Germany at 4.8% and brewery website says 5.1%, seems to vary quite a bit. Very dark brown to ruby colour, large to moderate light tan head that doesn’t last very long. Aroma is malty sweet with notes of caramel, chocolate, schwarzbrot and leather. Flavour is strangely sweet for a "Reinheitsgebot" schwarzbier: malts, syrup, molasses and caramel, just a faint hint of roastiness. Too sweet for me, very little hops to balance the sweetness. I could swear some kind of syrup had been added to the brew, but they say no. Despite the sweetness and the ABV, mouthfeel is a bit thin. Not my favourite schwarzbier this one.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. The 4.1% and the 4.7% B.B. Dark versions were sold side by side, with a different label. This version pours relatively light reddish brown with a moderate off-white head. Moderate aroma of caramel malts, hints of oak and roastiness. Flavour is relatively sweet and one-dimensional of caramel malts, but not unpleasant. Notes of fresh rye bread. Light bodied, easy drinking.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark, as B.B. (Budweis Bohemia) Dark (red label). The brown labeled 4.1% version was sold side by side. Pours copper coloured (darker than the 4.1% version), good light tan head. Aroma of caramel malts but also fruity aromatic hops. Flavour is one-dimensional caramel malts, a bit too sweet (even sweeter than the weaker version) but still drinkable.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

500 ml brown bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV there is 4.7%. Golden colour, moderate head. Moderate aroma - some grass, flowers and honey. Flavour is fairly clean with a moderately hoppy finish, aftertaste does not last forever. An average drinkable pilsener, but not much more than that.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

500 ml can, bought in Denmark. ABV is 4.2%. Golden colour, good head. Very moderate aroma, some flowery Saazer hops. Moderate hops on a tolerably malty background in the flavour, nothing remarkable but I can’t detect any off-flavours either. A drinkable pils, not the best from the Czech Rep. but not horrible either.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

(330 ml bottle, in Sweden. Later also available in Norway). Beautiful ruby colour, moderate head. Malty sweet aroma with hints of oak. Mellow flavour - a tad too sweet in my book. Low bitterness. Not a bad beer, but it lacks "bite".

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 6

440 ml nitro widget can, bought in Prague. Deep golden/amber colour, moderate creamy head. Pleasant but moderate fruity aroma with some malts and hops. Smooth and easy drinking, just enough hops and malts to make it a little better than "flavourless". Unpleasant metallic bitterness in the aftertaste.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Draught at the brewery beer hall. Served too cold, in the appropriate stylish glass. The beer has a beautiful amber colour, served with a moderate head. Fruity aroma with hints of caramel. Some caramel in the flavour too, but not really sweet. Nutty. Tolerably well hopped.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Label info: Herold Bohemian Golden Lager, Svetlý Lezák, 12 degrees plato, Pilsenerbier, ABV 5.1%. Golden colour, large head that doesn’t last long, little lacing. Lovely hoppy aroma, flowers (incl. heather flowers), honey and a hint of oak. Flavour is hoppy bitterness from start to finish, long bitter aftertaste. Moderate carbonation. A good pilsener, but not quite as good as Svijansky Rytír Bitter.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 10 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Label says Herold Bohemian Black Lager, tmavý speciál, 13 degrees plato, Schwarzbier, ABV 5.2%. Very dark reddish brown colour, nearly black, deep ruby when held to the light. Moderate tan head. Excellent aroma of roasted malts, tar, leather and tobacco. Flavour of roastiness, notes of dark chocolate and liquorice, well balanced with the hops, not particularly sweet. Mouthfeel a bit too thin to deserve a straight "10", still a very good beer. Recommended!

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Label says " Herold hefeweizen Bohemian Wheat Lager Kvasnicové psenícné pivo - kvasnícový svetlý lezák 12 degrees plato unfiltered blond lager ABV 5.1%". So is this a "real" hefeweizen (which I thought were technically ales?), or is it a wheat lager with hefeweizen yeast added in the bottle? Or am I asking stupid questions? Anyway, the beer is "murky golden" with a large to moderate head. Aroma is fairly sweet and fruity (blackberries/brambles, blackcurrants?) with hints of sheepshed and old leather. Lagerish elements. Some cloves too, but not as strong as with most German hefeweizens. Flavour is a strange combination of a typical premium lager and a typical hefeweizen. Moderately spicy. Dusty finish. Not bad.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Dark reddish brown to ruby colour, large & thick tan head. Aroma is surprisingly moderate: some malts, porridge, hints of roastiness, caramel. Flavour is more impressive: an immediate malty sweetness hits the tongue, followed by a pronounced roastiness with coffee elements. A robust & warming mouthfeel, alcohol is evident but not unpleasant. Roasted malts and quite a bit of hoppy bitterness in the aftertaste. Not bad.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

500 ml swingtop bottle, bought at the brewpub. Colour of this unfiltered and unpasteurised beer is hazy reddish brown. Pours with an enormous light tan head, which soon diminishes. Aroma is very malty (typical dunkel) with caramel and hints of oak and yeast. Quite flavourful for a beer this low ABV, plenty of malts and toffee, but low on hops. Smooth and easy drinking. The bottles were overpriced by Czech standards, but a Norwegian won’t mind!

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Draught at the brewpub. I also brought back a bottle of this beer and the Cerny/Tmavé which was unavailable on tap while we were there. (The bottled beers were sold in pairs, at an outrageous price by Czech standards - in Norway ALL beer prices are outrageous, so I didn’t mind.) The svetlé is an unfiltered pilsener, golden colour, slightly hazy, moderate head. Moderate hops aroma. Flavour has a herbal character and a dry bitter finish, which makes this beer a lot better than (most) industrial pilseners / pale lagers.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Draught at the brewpub/restaurant at the monastery. Dark brown, nearly black colour. Thick creamy head. Aroma of roasted malts, some leather, hints of treacle. Solid flavour of roasted malts and coffee, notes of dark bitter chocolate. Reminds me of a Baltic porter. Dry bitter aftertaste from the roastiness and hops. A very good beer - good enough to make me go back the next day for more! By the way - the brewery restaurant serves decent food too.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Draught. I had this Easter special lager at the brewery outdoor restaurant at the beautiful Strahov Klaster (monastery) in Prague. Beer was served too cold, but improves as it warms up. Cloudy golden to amber colour, large creamy head. Slightly yeasty aroma, some malts, hops and caramel too. Decent flavour, nice hoppy bitter finish.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Deep golden colour, moderate head. Nice hoppy aroma with hints of caramel. Flavour is fairly malty (at least if you want to categorize this as a pilsener), but a substantial hoppy bitterness and solid ABV (5.8%) make this a very robust relative of the lighter-bodied pilseners. Long bitter aftertaste. Way ahead of your average lager-swill.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. ABV is 8.0%. Golden colour, moderate head. Nice hoppy aroma, notes of caramel and berries. Flavour is hoppy (plenty of Saaz and probably other hops too) and moderately alcoholic (as expected from an 8% beer), but malty enough to sustain the hops and alcohol. Moderate sweetness throughout. Way ahead of most other high ABV golden lagers I’ve tasted.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Golden colour, large lasting head. Strong fruity and flowery hops aroma, some malts in there too, faint hints of leather and camphor. Flavour is a hoppy bitter explosion from start to finish, verging on being too much, but there also is a delicate malty sweetness below which makes the bitterness acceptable. Long, bitter and dry aftertaste. Who said pilseners don’t taste of anything?

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Typical dunkel reddish brown colour, large lasting off-white/beige head. Moderate malty aroma, notes of caramel and leather, maybe some dark fruits too. Low carbonation, a bit thin mouthfeel, malty sweet with notes of molasses, minimal bitterness. Nice enough to drink, but I’d really like some more hops to balance the sweetness. Must be another beer for the target group "convalescents and nursing mothers".