Beers I miss (part three): Braník 12° Dark

I was lucky enough to visit Prague several times in the 1980s. When Czechoslovakia had the highest general beer quality of anywhere in the world. I looked hard, but was unable to find any bad beer. Though a couple of beers really stood out, both of them dark. U Fleku 14° and Braník 12° Dark.

As a hardened Mild drinker, Czechoslovakia's dark beers naturally drew my attention. Though they could be difficult to track down. Most pubs only sold a single type of beer. And that was usually a pale Lager. Either 10° or 12°. Only the occasional pub plumped for a dark option. They did exist, though. And I managed to hunt some of them down.

There was a small one-room place on one of the narrow lanes leading to Charles bridge. An unassuming pub, unlike the larger beer halls. And it was there that I got my first taste of the the wonderful Braník 12° Dark. Unike some of Czechoslovakia's dark Lagers it wasn't particularly sweet. Though it was packed with malt flavours, topped off with a reasonable level of hop bitterness. And very drinkable, as all good Czech beers are. It reminded me of a really good Dark Mild. Though somewhat stronger.

"Pijte Branícke Pivo!" is the title of a Hasek (the author of "The Good Soldier Svejk") story. The title comes from a slogan attached to brewery, meaning "Drink Branik beer!" The story itself is about a travelling down the Vltava by boat. Where they go past the brewery. For me, it was just another reason to drink Branik beer.

Prague's breweries were privatised in a particularly stupid way. In the communist period, breweries were grouped together on a regional basis. All the breweries in Prague were in one such group. Which was sold off as one entity. Weirdly, ending up in the hands of Bass Charrington. Who would want to own multiple breweries in one city? Inevitably, all but Staropramen, the largets, were closed.

Braník closed in 2006. Which was pretty annoying. Even more annoying when I recently discovered that the plant had been completely modernised just a little earlier.

How I would love to return to the mid-1980s and drink a delicious Braník 12° Dark served by air pressure in a pub with stinky toilets.