The Czech Republic has a glorious brewing and beer drinking history that starts anywhere from A.D. 900 to 1088. In 1088, a church document mentions a hops tax, which was decreed by King Vratislav II to be paid to the church. Why else would people be growing hops other than for brewing purposes? It's a poor substitute for lettuce in salad and makes for a bad smoke.

It also has been purported that the "good king" Wenceslas (907-935) imposed the penalty of death for anyone caught removing live hops from Bohemia, which were the ancient lands that composed the western two-thirds of the present Czech Republic. The good king also is said to have been the one who convinced the pope to lift the ban on brewing at the time, making it legal for anyone to make up a brew. This might be one of the reasons he became known as the "good king."

Most of the beers consumed in the Czech Republic are bottom-fermented lagers, usually a pale, low-strength lager, or a classic Czech pale lager with a slightly higher alcohol content, about 5 percent. These beers vary in taste from dry and hoppy to sweet and malty.

Two of the most popular beers to be found in the classic Czech style are the dry Budvar and the sweeter Pilsner Urquell. Budvar is distributed by Anheuser-Busch in the United States but marketed as Czechvar, and, as of last year, was stilled brewed in the Czech Republic. Pilsner Urquell is now owned by the corporation SABMiller, which is also brewing this famous beer in Poland, a bad move in my opinion. Pilsner Urquell, meaning "original source," was originally only produced in Pilsen, Czech Republic, in what was formerly Bohemia. This is the model for all pilsners produced in the world.

I enjoyed both of these beers and many others due to the fact they have a great hoppy nose, thanks to our friend, the Saaz variety of hops and also that they are easy to drink.

The drinking venues in Prague range from the classic pub to almost German-like drinking halls, composed of long shared tables and served by wait staff that can carry eight half-liter glasses at once.

I tend to enjoy the dark smoky basement bars that are a cross between the beer hall and pub where one can get their drink on, as well as chat their way through the night with locals as well as people from around the world. There is a supposed smoking ban in Prague, but the only place one is able to receive a ticket is at a tram stop, and that is usually dictated by the particular police person's need of funding, probably for beer and cigarettes. I noticed that the bulk of Prague residents are conscientious objectors to laws written by the few and modeled to the masses.

Prague is a beautiful city, with an amazing yet brutal history and wonderful people. It is a great place to have a beer, or nine for that matter.

Go on over, and Czech it out.