Czech beer decoded: světlé, tmavé, řezané and what 12° really means

Ordering in a Czech pub is easy: say jedno pivo and the house lager arrives. Then you read the beer list and the numbers, colour words and talk of unfiltered start piling up. Here is the decoder.

The short version: Czech beer is described by colour first, strength second, and freshness third. Once you know the three, you can read any tap list in the country.

Why Czech beer means lager

Pale lager, the style the world calls pilsner, was first brewed in Plzeň in 1842. It spread across Europe and shaped lager brewing far beyond Czechia. Czechs still drink mostly pale lager, but dark, half-dark and craft beers are on the map too. Pubs pour half a litre unless you ask for something smaller.

What is on the tap list

Many Czech pubs are tied to a brewery, so the list is short: one brand, usually a pale lager, sometimes a dark or a half-dark beside it. The names you will see most are Pilsner Urquell and Gambrinus from Plzeň, Staropramen from Prague, Kozel, Budvar from České Budějovice (the original Budweiser, which explains the trademark arguments with its American namesake) and independent family breweries such as Bernard. Each has its own balance of bitterness and sweetness, and the fun is in comparing them, not in picking a winner.

A mini-brewery or craft pub will often list five or six taps with a degree and style next to each. Use the colour words and the degrees to choose and ask the bartender for a taste if you are unsure. Czech bartenders are rarely precious about it.

The colour words

Světlé (pale) is the standard golden lager: crisp, with a clear hop bitterness.

Tmavé (dark) is a dark lager, often with roasted malt, coffee or caramel notes. It is usually smooth, not heavy.

Polotmavé (half-dark or amber) sits in between. Toasty and malty, without the roasted edge of a dark beer.

Řezané (literally "cut") is pale and dark poured together, which makes it a good way to try both in one glass.

Černé (black) is a very dark beer, sometimes used interchangeably with tmavé.

What the degrees mean

You will see 10° (desítka), 11° or 12° (dvanáctka) on beer lists. The number is degrees Plato, the sugar content of the wort before fermentation. It does not tell you the alcohol directly. Higher degrees usually mean a fuller beer, though not always stronger, so look for the alcohol percentage (obsah alkoholu) on the label or menu.

Výčepní is the term for a lighter draught beer, often 10°. Ležák is a lager aged for longer, often 11° or 12°.

The trap for newcomers: 12° does not mean 12 per cent alcohol. Degrees and alcohol are two different measurements, and the second one is usually printed separately. If you want to drink steadily through an evening, 10° is the lighter choice. If you want to taste, 12° has more body.

Fresh, unfiltered and tank beer

Some pubs advertise nefiltrované (unfiltered) or kvasnicové (yeast) beer, which is cloudier, softer and fuller. Nepasterované means unpasteurised. Tankové pivo (tank beer) is delivered unpasteurised into tanks at the pub and tastes fresher than kegged beer. If a pub makes a point of its tank, order from it.

How it is poured

Some pubs will pour in different ways. Hladinka has a thick, creamy head and a balanced taste. Šnyt is a short pour with more foam, a small drink for the thirsty. Mlíko (milk) is almost all foam, sweet and creamy. Not every pub offers these, so just ask.

A properly poured Czech beer takes a few minutes: the bartender fills the glass in stages and lets the foam settle. If you are impatient, order a second one while the first rests. That is how the locals do it.

Beyond lager

Prague now has craft breweries and beer bars serving IPAs, wheat beers and seasonal specials. Look for pšeničné (wheat), IPA, pale ale and polotmavé speciál on the menu. Many breweries also release a stronger seasonal lager around Christmas and Easter.

Mini-breweries (minipivovar) often run a restaurant on the side and brew on the premises. They tend to offer a pale, a dark and a rotating special, which makes them a good place to compare.

How to order

• Jedno pivo, prosím. One beer, please.
• Malé pivo, prosím. A small beer, in a smaller glass.
• Dvanáctku, prosím. A 12° beer.
• Řezané, prosím. A pale-and-dark mix.
• Nealkoholické pivo. Non-alcoholic beer, widely available.

Check the beer list for the price per glass, because it varies between places.

Frequently asked questions

What does 12° mean on a Czech beer?

Degrees Plato: the sugar content of the wort before fermentation. It does not directly state alcohol content.

What is the difference between světlé and tmavé?

Světlé is pale lager, tmavé is dark lager. Polotmavé sits between them.

What is řezané?

A mix of pale and dark beer poured together in one glass.

What is tank beer?

Unpasteurised beer delivered to tanks at the pub, usually fresher than kegged beer.

How big is a standard Czech beer?

Half a litre in most pubs. Ask for a malé for a smaller glass.

Tonight

Start with a pale lager, move to a half-dark in the next round and a dark in the third. With friends, order a řezané and share. Note the bitterness, the sweetness and the aftertaste, and pick a winner. If the pub has tank or unfiltered beer, ask for that too. Na zdraví.