Free beer! Free beer! Free beer! And it’s potentially the best beer you’ve ever had. Barrels of Pilsner Urquell’s unfiltered, unpasteurised beer are on a tour of Germany and I am an unabashed groupie.

The Pilsner Urquell Braukunst-Tour is a rare opportunity to try the father of all Pilsner beers – the original, unfiltered and unpasteurised Pilsner Urquell, brewed in the traditional method and barreled just days before in Pilsen, Czech Republic. The tour is coming to Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Dresden and Leipzig and all you need to do to enjoy a few of these beers, absolutely free and in a bar near you with up to five of your friends, is visit Pilsner Urquell’s Facebook page and register yourself for whichever event you wish to go to.

Upcoming Berlin Events on the Braukunst-Tour:

Thursday 20th November

Zebrano, Friedrichshain – 20:00 Uhr
Minimal Bar, Friedrichshain – 22:00 Uhr
Flaschenzug, Neukölln – 21:00 Uhr
Kindl Stuben, Neukölln – 23:00 Uhr

Friday 21st November

Das Hotel, Kreuzberg – 19:00 Uhr
Tante Lisbeth, Kreuzberg – 21:00 Uhr
Zum Böhmischen Dorf, Kreuzberg – 23:00 Uhr
Prachtwerk, Neukölln – 21:00 Uhr
Promenaden Eck, Neukölln – 23:00 Uhr

Thursday 27th November

Entweder Oder, Prenzl. Berg – 20:00 Uhr
George R., Moabit – 22:00 Uhr

Friday 28th November

Leib und Seele, Wilmersdorf – 19:00 Uhr
Rote Beete, Schöneberg – 21:00 Uhr

Register your place on the Pilsner Urquell Facebook page here.

What’s the difference between this beer and the Pilsner Urquell sold in bottles and in bars around the world? In short, a lot.

As it’s unfiltered, it’s naturally cloudy. As it’s unpasteurised, it has to be freshly brewed – and you can really taste that freshness in the beer. The flavours are somewhat more alive. Rawer. You can taste the grains and different ingredients in the beer, and it’s thicker, almost coating your mouth as you drink it. And that foam! It’s so thick and creamy you could shave with it. If you enjoy Pilsner beer, this is an opportunity you should not miss.

I’ve been lucky enough to try unfiltered, unpasteurised Pilsner Urquell only twice before in my life. Two weeks ago, when the Braukunst-Tour was in Kreuzberg, and before that was whilst I was in the town of Pilsen itself.

50 metres underground, below the Pilsner Urquell brewery, you’ll find kilometres of centuries-old lamp-lit cellars. It’s here that Pilsner Urquell mature their beer in the traditional way in huge, hand-made wooden barrels and it’s here visitors to the brewery get to try the fresh, unpasteurised and unfiltered beer straight from the casks. As this beer cannot be stored for very long, and cannot travel very far, your only chance to try might be by making a pilgrimage to Pilsen. That, or by signing up for the Braukunst-Tour.

Zum Böhmischen Dorf

If you miss the tour but want to try unpasteurised (although filtered) Pilsner Urquell, visit Pilsner Urquell’s Zum Böhmischen Dorf bar in Neukölln. This cozy Czech ‘Tankbier’ bar receives a constant supply of the good stuff direct from Pilsen, which it serves vom Fass but without adding carbon dioxide, giving a more authentic Pilsner beer.

Register for the Pilsner Urquell Braukunst-Tour

Zum BÖHMISCHEN Dorf
Sanderstraße 11
12047 Berlin
Visit their website