AINE FOX heads over to the Czech Republic for a beer bath and to explore the origins of a very famous lager
I’M NO stranger to a chilled-out spa day. But as I snuggle into a white robe and a pair of slippers, I realise I’m heading for no ordinary pampering session. Scents of jojoba and lavender have been replaced by hops, and if I close my eyes and inhale deeply, it’s easy to imagine I’m walking into a brewery.
The Purkmistr Beer Spa in Pilsen offers a selection of alternative bathing sessions, ranging from a peat or cannabis bath, to sloshing around in Pilsner-style beer.
Because not only do Czechs value the taste of their local delicacy, they believe it does wonders for your skin and hair, too.
Pilsen is home to the Czech Republic’s world-famous lager, still made in the city 180 years after
Bavarian brewmaster Josef Groll launched the first batch of bottomfermented beer.
Czechs take great pride in this local drink. Of the 1.5 million litres brewed in the huge Pilsner Urquell Brewery every day, just 35 per cent is transported around the world. The rest is lapped up by locals and tourists alike in the Czech Republic.
Sinking into a bath of warm beer might not sound appealing, but with Adele singing from the speakers, I’m able to relax as I step into a standalone wooden tub, with my very own keg of Purkmistr 12° lager on tap. The bath water is non-alcoholic, I’m told, so don’t even think about having a glug.
I manage to sip half a glass of beer during my bath, but the keg contains a full five litres, which I could enjoy if I was so inclined. Some people, I’m told, have been known to sink 12 rounds.
After 25 minutes of hoppy heaven, I get out for a 25-minute relaxation stint, and am advised to avoid showering for around six hours, to ensure the goodness can seep in.
If you prefer to sip rather than soak, take the tour of the Pilsner Urquell Brewery. As part of the one-hour-and40-minute experience, each visitor gets a glass of unfermented, unpasteurised Pilsner to drink – tapped straight in front of you from an oak lager cask.
I enjoy the rich, smooth texture, and regular Pilsner drinkers in my group all agree it tastes even better straight from the source. The brewery’s Na Spilce restaurant is also worth a visit, serving up traditional Czech cuisine, including beer-marinated pork with potato dumplings and sauerkraut.
It may be much smaller than Prague, but Pilsen has a rich history, colourful buildings and some beautiful art.
The Gothic St Bartholomew’s Cathedral sits in the centre of the Republic Square, while cobbled side streets are bursting with bars, ideal for enjoying a cold beer in the sun.
Before the 1989 Velvet Revolution, which ‘gently’ ended four decades of Soviet communism, the city was known as ‘black Pilsen’ due to its dark, industrial appearance. Yet today, it’s as pretty as many of its European
counterparts.
A further boost came in 2015, when it was crowned European Capital of Culture, prompting more than three million visitors to come to the city that year.
After all that beer, there’s nothing like fresh air to soothe a sore head, and there’s plenty of green space in the stunning Sumava National Park, 83km from Pilsen. As the bright summer sun glistens through a canopy of tall spruce trees, I savour the silence, which is broken only by the tweeting of birds flying overhead. It’s hard to picture the troubled history of a region once divided by the Iron Curtain.
The 263-square mile area was designated a national park in 1991 and is the largest protected green space in the Czech Republic.
Bordering Bavaria, the park currently attracts mostly visitors from Germany and the Czech Republic, which explains the lack of English on many tourist information signs. Efforts are being made to appeal to visitors from the UK and Ireland, but no words on a pamphlet can beat being there.
As I sit with my feet dangling over the clear waters of Black Lake deep in the forest, I am blown away by the beauty. It may lack the alcoholic oomph of a pint of Pilsner, but as far as I’m concerned, the sight is even more intoxicating.