Pivní Filosof - Beer Philosopher

It’s quite stuffy when I go back to Lazarská . Fortunately, the first tram to arrive is not the 3, which would have taken me back to the first place I visited, but the 24. I get off at Svatoplukova . I see two pubs from the tram stop, but neither of them look very inviting – I know I’m supposed to be adventurous and discover new places, but I still trust my instincts. Čep & Pec it is then. I know it, I’ve been there twice, but that was literally years ago, and I feel it’s the right place for a muggy day like today. Čep & Pec is a perfect example of the pub-café hybrid (or hospodo-kavárna, as they describe it in their website) that has become so common in Prague and the last decade and something. They are places where you can go with someone who doesn’t drink or doesn’t like typical pubs, without you having to sacrifice good beer, while they can have a solid cuppa. I also like them to go for a pint in the company of a book, as they generally more laid back than a hospoda and at...

It’s a beautiful late April afternoon in Prague and I’m standing at Jiráskovo náměstí, waiting where the gods of MHD will take me today. Frankly, I’m not very excited, if memory serves well, the chances of finding a solid pub in any of the four possible destinations of the first leg are not that great. Here comes the first tram, #5 heading to Vozovna Zižkov. I get on and start counting the stops. Fuck! Hlavní nádraží. All I can remember around there are the two overpriced sports in the station itself, and U Staré Pošty in Opletalova, a hospoda I’ve never liked for some reason. I get off, already resigned to the idea of having a Pilnser Urquell U Staré Pošty , when I tell myself ‘fuck it! I will cheat’, and change direction, towards the the tunnel that now connects the train station with Žižkov and the new building complex that has sprouted there in the last decade or so. Yeah, I’m cheating, in my own challenge, which I play alone – if you disapprove, good luck finding a better beer blo...

Hello! Is there anybody out there? I’ve been itching to resume writing for a while now, and I thought rebooting the Tram Beer Challenge after a ten-year-hiatus would be a good start. For those who don’t remember (or can’t be arsed to follow the link), the rules are simple: take first tram to arrive at a given stop, get off that the sixth stop, go to the nearest or a nearby enough pub, have a pifko or two, go back to the same stop, take the first tram that shows up (this time to the fourth stop to avoid ending up where I began), go to the nearest or a nearby enough pub, have a pifko or two, rinse and repeat. All this without relying on online maps, let alone reviews, and, if there isn’t a direct line of sight between a stop and a pub, I will use my memory, instincts and curiosity. Let’s go then! It’s a nice, early spring day and, like the previous time, I’m starting at Karlovo náměstí. As I’m approaching the junction, trying to decide where I will stand, I see the 3 to sídliště Modřany ...

Remember that trip to Norway I did two years ago , where Sigurd taught us how to brew Norwegian raw ale? Well, that was just the beginning of our cooperation (and friendship) with him. Sigurd came to Czechia two months later to give a talk about kveik at Černokostelecký pivovar and to visit a few pubs in Prague. There were also plans for last year, which had to be cancelled for reasons I’m sure you’re well aware of, and the same fate suffered some of this year’s plans, too; though not all of them, fortunately. Sigurd was back in our neck of the woods recently, and this time we would stay for almost a week. The program prepared for him was quite packed, it started on Monday at U Fleku , where Sigurd was brought straight from the airport. I met at the beer hall of the historical brewery with Tomáš “Vodouch” Vodochovský, one of the owners of Černokostelecký pivovar, and when Sigurd arrived with Pavel (a member of the staff of ČP) we headed towards the brewery itself and its museum, not b...

Needless to say, I slept like a drunk baby. In the morning, I didn’t get up immediately when I woke up, I was very comfortable and didn’t fancy leaving the bed – the room, by the way, was great, it looked and felt substantially more expensive than the price I paid. When the call of nature could no longer be ignored, I reluctantly got up, fearful of the pain after the exertions of the previous day. But my legs were fine, no soreness, I felt like after one of my usual 10 km walks around town. Go figure. As I’ve said, the room at Penzion Mácha was great, but the breakfast was a bit wanting. The coffee was fine, yes, but all the rest was uninspiring, boring and supermarket quality. After having a couple of coffees and eating something because-it’s-included-in-the-price-and-would-be-a-waste-otherwise, I picked my book and went to explore the city a little more.  Litoměřice is ideal for a day trip. The main square is gorgeous, there’s plenty of nice architecture, and it’s also a little ...

It didn’t take long to leave the city behind and for the trail to start climbing, taking me my past Střekov castle, into the beautiful suburb of Brná and then into the woods. Save for a couple of (fortunately) short sections, the slope wasn’t too steep, it was the sort of gradient that gradually saps your energy, especially when you can’t keep a steady pace due to rocks, roots and other minor obstacles. Another problem was that the trail was not very well marked in some parts and more than once I lost the way and had to retrace my steps, until I missed a turn right before the village of Sebuzín, which I didn’t realise until after kilometre or so downhill section. After weighing my options, I said fuck it and had the Mapy.cz app draw me a new route. It would be a couple of kilometres longer, but with a gentler slope, apparently.  The walk was as brutal as I expected given my shape, and there were several moments when I questioned the wisdom of the endeavour, but the sights and the u...