Starobrno has been brewed in Staré Brno for 150 years
In 1323, Queen Eliška Rejčka founded a Cistercian monastery on today’s Mendl Square, which also included a brewery. The golden liquid (albeit in a slightly different form and quality than we know it today) was then brewed by nuns, of course for commercial purposes.
The brewery lasted for centuries until 1872, when its owners at the time, Josef Mandel and Hermann Hayek, decided to build a new brewery in Hlinky Street in the immediate vicinity, which would compete with the brewing “boom” of the time – the Starobrno brewery!
It operates and brews beer in the same place throughout its existence. For the construction of the new brewery, the owners chose the premises of the former brick factory at the foot of the Yellow Hill. According to preliminary plans, the new and for its time modern brewery was supposed to brew 40,000 to 50,000 hectoliters of beer annually.
The Starobrno Brewery has been successful since the beginning – at the World Exhibition in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century, it won the Grand Prix award. It gradually becomes the largest brewery in Moravia and the third largest in the republic. Starobrno already offered a wide portfolio of beers and specialties back then. Brewers brewed, for example, 14-degree Baron Trenck beer, and even Bier Brand brandy was produced here.
Four times hopped lager Bitr: Brno’s bitterness and pride
And then came World War II. On November 20, 1944, bombs fell from the Brno sky, eight of them not close to the brewery. The damage directly in the brewery was considerable, especially in the malt house, where the bombing broke through the vaults of two floors. The cooperage and all the steam, water, electricity and sewage supplies were also damaged. As soon as the brewery recovered from the war damage, another blow came in the form of a communist coup and nationalization, which in practice meant decline.
After the November Velvet Revolution, the Starobrno brewery moved towards an independent economy. After the coupon privatization, the state-owned enterprise became a joint-stock company and was later part of the Austrian brewing group BBAG, which provided the necessary capital for its modernization. The connection with the Austrians paid off for the brewery from Staro Brno – for example, it can boast the title Brewery of the Year 1998. In 2003, it changed hands and became part of the multinational company HEINEKEN, which it still is today.
They say that the brewhouse is the heart of every brewery and one of the most important operations ever. And in 2008, Starobrno also got its new brewery. The brewers here brew beer using traditional and years-proven procedures, decoctioning two mashes from selected raw materials – Moravian malt and hops from the Žatec region. Of course, the most important thing is the quality of the beer. After all, every batch must taste good to all Starobrno regulars!
The Starobrno brewery invites you on excursions and tastings directly in the cellar
Even thanks to the new brewery, the brewery far exceeded the plans for annual exhibitions and in 2010 conquered the magical threshold of 1 million brewed hectoliters of beer per calendar year. In 2012, the brewers from Staro Brno scored another significant success, which helped to increase the quality of the beer they brew for their brewers. The brewery started using a unique membrane microfilter, thanks to which all draft and bottled beer is unpasteurized. In this way, the beer does not suffer a temperature shock and maintains its fresh and naturally delicious taste.
You can toast to the brewery’s 150th anniversary with the newest beer in the portfolio – Starobrno Bitr extra bitter lager. The 2020 lager is the most bitter beer in the entire history of the brewery, and in its production, the brewers combine proven traditional methods with the most modern technologies. It is brewed from three types of exclusively Czech hops and is hopped a total of four times, the last time cold with Žatec semi-early red wine directly in the cellar. It then matures in the historic cellar from the year it was founded, where the temperature has been ideal for 150 years. Bitr lies in vats from the 60s and 70s of the last century, which take special care and is thus a beer with a high proportion of manual labor.
Bitr extra bitter beer is brewed by the Starobrno brewery. Do you know how and with what raw materials?
The Starobrno brewery in Staré Brno is celebrating a big anniversary this year
150 years since its creation. Today it is a modern brewery that preserves traditional production methods and uses the best Moravian and Czech raw materials. The portfolio of Staro Brno beers includes the light draft beer Staré Brno, the most popular eleven Medium and lager Bitr. It was created in 2020 at the request of brewers and became the most bitter beer in the history of Starobrno. Green beer, tapped on Maundy Thursday, has become an essential Easter tradition.
Since 2012, the brand has been offering its consumers the unpasteurized form of its key products. The Starobrno brand regularly succeeds in placing in the top ranks in tasting competitions. In 2017, Starobrno Drak pale lager won second place in the Pivex Golden Barrel competition. Starobrno Medium light lager took third place at Piva České republiky.
Starobrno Drak and Starobrno Medium also succeeded in the Czech beer competition – both beers won second place in their respective categories. So far in 2018, Staro Brno beers have won two second places at the Golden Beer Seal. Starobrno Medium also placed third in the Pivex Zlatý soudek competition. Medium got the same position on Pivex a year later.