This recipe made the Gold Medal winning beer in the Czech Pilsener style at the 2021 National Homebrew Competition, taking the top award out of 199 entries in the category. It was brewed by Jeff Klatt of San Bruno, CA. At The Beverage People, we have adapted his recipe into an all-grain beer kit, and this discussion is intended to prepare you for brewing this recipe yourself. I brewed this beer myself in October 2025 as a part of our launching of the recipe kit, and I hope these notes about the ingredients, processes, and my own experience with the beer will help you. With thanks to the recipe founder Jeff Klatt, and the AHA, let’s get into the details! Overview of the StyleMost people know this beer style as Czech Pilsener, famous in the US from the well known Pilsener Urquel, and Budweiser Budvar (the original “Beer of Kings”, preceding the ubiquitous “King of Beers”). In the current 2021 Beer Judge Certification (BJCP) Style Guide, it is called Czech Premium Pale Lager. It’s a historic beer style that was revolutionary in its birth in 1842 Plzeň. Its popularity remains strong and has even seen a resurgence in craft and homebrew popularity lately. The style is quite narrowly defined, and minor variation tends to push a recipe out of the style parameters. When brewing a Czech Pils, it's best to stick closely to the script and save experimentation for another brew. Key Ingredients to Be DiscussedAbout Barke® Pilsener Malt from Weyermann: For decades we have stocked and enjoyed Weyerman malts from Germany. Their standard German Pilsener malt is popular and beloved. This recipe, however, calls for a variant Pilsenser malt they make called Barke Pilsener. It is a single heirloom barley variety malted to a lighter color and results in more body and mouthfeel than their standard Pils malt. It also provides better head retention and foam development. For a delicate but full body beer like Czech Pils, these are perfect attributes.
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