2013 was again a good year for the Czech beer scene. As not only has the variety expanded, we’re continuing to taste higher quality, more well-made beers. How lucky we are to be in a place with increasingly higher standards of not just beer, but the gastronomy surrounding beer.

Here are are few of this year’s highlights:

1. Finally some decent Staropramen! Served frigidly cold, alongside some great Czech cuisine, Vinohradský Parlament has got it right.
2. Zlý Časy now serves some quite alright food to match their impressive selection.
3. Some noteworthy newcomers to the Czech brewery scene: Pivovar Zhuřak (brewed by an American, Chis Baerwaldt) and Pivovar Falkon (a gypsy brewery, brewed by Jakub Veselý) consistently have brewed inventive and simply delicious beers. Luckily, the best multi-tap pubs in Prague have kept up with our curiosity and have had them almost regularly on tap.
4. Our favorite new brewery- Pivovar Hostivar, for serving good cuisine, brewing perhaps the best 11° degree lager we’ve had in a while, all in a new, modern atmosphere.

On the downside, we have made a list of the worst pub experiences to be had in 2013:

1. Having the fact that tip is not included be pointed out by a rather abrasive and irritating waiter at U Tří Růží.
2. Waiting 40 minutes for an overpriced, stale beer at Prague Beer Museum.
3. Those party killer dark lagers, like Zámek Zábřeh’s, that just make you want to go to sleep.
4. Anything to do with the Czech Beer Festival.
5. Porky burgers and clueless service at Peter’s Burger Pub.
6. A Žižkov tragedy, the closing of Merenda.

Our Favorite Beers of 2013:

1. Always Úněticky...you just can’t beat this lager. Perfect for all occasions, all the time. 10° for lunch, and 12° for dinner.
2. Falkon’s Stalker IPA
3. Pivovar Třebíč’s Cornel Single Malt Ale
4. Hostivar’s 11° lager
5. Anything David Staněk cooks up at Třebonice.