Tuesday 7th May 2013
Bob Thompson
The Three Roses is a very welcome newcomer to the Old Town (Staroměsta) scene and has already achieved a good reputation for its beer and food. Although it is in one of the parts of the city most visited by tourists it manages to be traditionally Czech. This is remarkable as it only opened in 2012. I did my normal research before visiting and concluded that as it had a Michelin-starred chef it would be best to avoid the lunch period so I made an attempt to get there at opening time, 11.00. I failed this simple task, and arrived at 11.30.
Just one table was occupied and I was able to claim a stool by the bar right next to the brewery and was immediately served by a member of the attentive waiting staff. The beer range is extensive and I'll mention it later. I took a look around and there's a lot to see in the compact corner pub. It seemed to me that a considerable amount of money had been spent to get it right. There is a further room upstairs but I didn't visit it on this occasion.
Apart from the sparkling copper of the brewery, there was, at the other end of the pub, two walls covered with a mural in cartoon style extolling the virtues of drinking beer.
In fact there were framed cartoons all over the pub. I could only guess at what the speech bubbles said, although in some it was obvious. The cartoons and the walls are the work of artists Jiří Bernard and Pavel Jakl.
It is not known exactly how old the pub is but it was known to exist in 1405. Some time after that a license was granted to man called Beneš for the brewing of beer on the premises and the tavern was The Three Silver Roses. Some time after, maybe a long time after, it ceased to brew and then became a residential property. Sadly, the dates when this happened are not known. However the knowledge must be out there somewhere.
Its modern history commences in 2012 when it opened as a pub, brewery and restaurant. The brewer is Robert Maňék and one can normally find six of his unfiltered and unpasteurized beers on offer. The regulars are Svetlý ležák (5.0%), the normal light beer; Polotmavý ležák (5.0%), an amber; Tmavý ležák, a dark and Ur Weiss Bock, a wheat bock.
There was also Klasterni speciál sv. Jiljí 18° (7.2%). This is St. Giles's Monastery Special, the first of a series of four monastic beers being brewed here, and is an amber Bock. A very interesting concept, but I would like to know if they are made to genuine old recipes, or something more modern.
The seasonal beer for May was New Zealand Hop Lager (5.1%), a beer with an English title that is self-explanatory. I tried it and liked it because of its bitterness but I admit that it was very unbalanced and I couldn't have too many glasses of it.
They brew many specials and if you go to the WCs downstairs you will see another wall painting halfway down the stairs that lists what they have brewed already. The beers are made very traditionally. The first fermentation takes 8 to 10 days at 7°C to 10°C and that is a bit longer than most breweries. The bottom-fermented beers have 10 days and the lager beers get 12 days. This is followed by 40 days at 1° to 3° in the secondary fermentation tanks.
This is a very likable pub and its location means that it is only a few minutes walk from the many other beer attractions of the Old Town. I left around 12.30 and although it was filling up with diners, I know I could have stayed longer, just drinking beer without any pressure to eat. This is a thoroughly recommended pub.
Important Information:
U Tří Růží, Husova 232/10, Praha 1. Tel: 601588 281
Open: Sunday to Thursday 11.00-23.00; Friday and Saturday 11.00-24.00
As the pub is in the old town the is no public transport passing but there are metro stations close by with many tram routes less then ten minutes away.
