In one of Arizona’s most-anticipated beer events of the year, Papago Brewing Co. will tap a fresh cask of Pilsner Urquell flown directly from the legendary European brewery Friday.
The Scottsdale bar won the wood cask in August in a Draft Magazine contest to determine “The Freshest Bar in America.”
Pilsner Urquell has been brewed since 1842 in the town of Pilsen, today part of the Czech Republic. It was the world’s first pilsner beer, a style that now accounts for about 90% of beer worldwide.
Although Pilsner Urquell is readily available throughout the world, the fresh cask version – unpasteurized, unfiltered, and uncarbonated – almost never is available outside the Czech Republic. The last such cask sent to the U.S. was in 1999.
“The regular Pilsner Urquell sold here tastes nothing like the unpasteurized, fresh version that you can only get at the brewery and a few select places in the Czech Republic,†Papago’s Ron Kloth says. “It is so good it would even convert the most die-hard double IPA fan into a lager drinker.â€
The 150-liter barrel will be tapped by head brewer Vaclav Berka – only the sixth man to hold that title in Urquell’s history – at 3 p.m. Friday.
For early arrivals, Papago will start pouring the unpasteurized version from a keg when doors open at noon. For later arrivals, another 25-liter cask will be tapped at 6.
