Tuesday 23rd July 2013
Bob Thompson
First of all, it's necessary to explain the name of this brew-pub as its title is in reality a made-up word of pub and liberty. Nevertheless, you would have thought a name that was less likely of misinterpretation would have been a more appropriate choice; however, it's too late now!
This is a modern pub on the embankment of one of the many branches of the river Neva and is actually not near any place of much importance; a few office buildings, some light industry and a few apartment blocks. I could envisage that it is not visited by many of the thousands of tourists that come to the city. I had arrived here by private hire car as my starting point was the Bierstube pub which is not near the metro and this place is around fifteen minutes walk from any public transport.
It's a Czech restaurant and brewery and its signage is the same as that of its parent Klášterní Pivovar Strahov in Prague. It means the Strahov Monastery Brewery, as it is located on the site of an old monastery on the top of the Castle Hill in that city. Although that is in a very old building, it was only established in 2000. There is an article in BeerVisits on this pub, please look under Prague in the index.
Back to St Petersburg, I entered and turned right into the main part of the restaurant. There was a long bar and the brewery was located behind it. I took a stool at the bar. The beers are all made with imported Czech malts and hops and go under the same generic name, Sv. Norbert (St Norbert), as they do in Prague. In fact I thought they had got the taste right as well. Although they should, as the brewer is Czech. The beers undergo a primary fermentation time of seven days followed by the secondary maturation that takes three weeks. They are served directly from the tanks to the fonts.
The beer range is pretty similar as well. The light beer comes in filtered and unfiltered versions; the remainder were all unfiltered. This was what was on offer: Light (Pilsner), Wheat (Weizen) and Dark. There is also a regular seasonal beer but I was not sure if they had one on at this time. There was one advertised on a board, but just for once I am stumped with the Cyrillic script, as I just could not transliterate it. For the record it was Бокал Нащето Пиво. Can anyone help and tell us what this beer was?
I had both the light and the dark and thought they were both very good. The menu is mostly Czech and Russian and I would recommend a visit to this pub to taste its unique beers. (In St Petersburg, at least!)
Important Information:
Puberty, nab. Vyborgskaya 47, Sankt Peterburg. Tel: 812 333 2020
Puberty, Выборгская наб 47, Санкт-Петербург
Open: Sunday to Thursday 12.00-01.00; Friday and Saturday 12.00-03.00
On Friday and Saturday there is live music or a disco after 22.00
Metro/Метро: Vyborgskaya/Выборгская. About 15 minutes walk to the pub.