I was wondering if any of my fellow Germans have any idea where to find a Czech Amber Lager (Polotmavy) in Germany, ideally in the greater Cologne/Bonn area? Can it be ordered online at all? Staropramen is easy enough to find for a Czech Pale Lager and I know they make an Amber Lager as well (Granat), but I have had no luck trying to find that anywhere so far.
I took a tour of Staropramen Brewery a few years ago and I recall they had interactive software which illustrated how the beer was delivered to a selected country. I watched on of the folks on he tour select the UK and the software illustrated the delivery route for the beer being transported/delivered. There were no specific indications/choices of brands though. Below is an extract from my article discussing Staropramen Granat: “The Granat beer is marketed by Staropramen as being brewed using a recipe from 1884. From the Staropramen website: “Staropramen Granat is a unique lager which proudly embodies our brewing traditions. This beer is based on the original recipe from 1884. The special sprinkling process of mixing pale and specialty malts is what gives the beer its unique ruby red - granat - colour. Staropramen Granat – fine hops meet a perfect combination of three different malts.” The Granat reminded me of Yuengling Traditional Lager. It was brewed well but not exactly a favorite of mine.” https://www.morebeer.com/articles/Czech_Beers Hopefully some BAs who live in Germany can provide more details about the availability of bottles of Staropramen Granat in Germany. The Granat beer is the second from the left in the below photo. Na Zdravi
This bar in Duisburg has Staropramen Granát: https://finkenkrug.de/ . If Wenzel Prager Bierstuben in Chemnitz still exists, they also used to have Staropramen Granát.
I took note from the Finkenkrug website in their description of Staropramen Granat: “Das mysteriöse Pils, von dem immer mal jemand spricht und nie einer weiß, wo es das Bier zu kaufen gibt. Staropramen Granát wurde nach spezieller Prozedur gebraut. Dadurch erhält es seine einzigartige Granat-Farbe und seinen Namen.” From an online translator: “The mysterious Pilsner that someone always talks about and never knows where to buy the beer. Staropramen Granát was brewed using a special procedure. This gives it its unique garnet color and name.” I suppose there is no specific German equivalent for Polotmavy so “mysterious Pilsner” was chosen to detail this beer? Na Zdravi
The near-equivalent would have to be "Wiener / Vienna", but that is not a common beer term in Germany now, and has not been since the end of the 19th century. Even in Denmark breweries use terms like "dark pilsener", as "pilsener" is the only beer style that "the great unwashed masses" have a relationship to.
Looks like I might have to bite the bullet and order a whole tray if I want that sweet, sweet second-to-last style tick. Still cheaper than a return ticket to Duisburg... https://www.hopfenkurier.com/staropramen-granat-24x500ml-palette.html
Managed to order a Polotmavy from a Czech online store along with some other stuff. Might as well go large for my second-to-last style tick! @JackHorzempa Pivovar Mazàk - 11 Jantar Czech Amber Lager (Polotmavy) from the Czech Republic (4.3%). Pours a clear, amber coloration with a medium, fluffy, lasting head. Smells of bready, slightly grainy and caramelly malt and herbal, grassy, slightly floral hops. Taste follows the nose, with a great balance of bready, slightly grainy and caramelly malt and herbal, grassy, slightly floral hops, with hints of red berries and honey coming through as well. Finishes with a light/medium bitterness and some bready malt, herbal hops and hints of red berries lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation. I always find it difficult to rate the first beer I had of a certain style to style, but seems like a really solid example of a Polotmavy to say the least. There's a pronounced, slightly sweet and caramelly malt character to this, but with a solid, herbal and bitter hop presence as well. It's that balance of malt and hops which makes this quite enjoyable, while being rather flavorful for the low ABV as well. Overall, this makes for a flavorful, refreshing low-ABV brew that I could easily see myself knock back a few of on a hot summer day.
Technically, the style is listed as "Czech Amber Lager" on BA and this is what this is according to the brewer's description on their website. I just assumed it to be same thing, as it's listed under "Amber Lager - Czech / Polotmavy" on RB. From what I understand, Amber Lager and Polotmavy are pretty much the same thing, Polotmavy literally meaning "semi-dark". Not sure why this is labeled as "Svetly Lezak" (pale lager) when the brewer clearly labels it as an amber lager on their website and so do both UT and RB. There's also a sticker on the back identifying it as a Polotmavy, not to mention that it should be pretty clear from the picture that this is not a pale lager.
Polotmavy is hard to find in Germany, unless you order directly from a czech online store. Norma was supposed to have Staropramen Granat 8 packs on sale a few months ago, but that never arrived in my Area
