The family brewery in Chodová Planá was built on ancient cellars cut in granite massif. The origins of the cellars are connected with the foundation of a little local castle. That time is also linked with a tale about Albi the dog, which found a well with a plentiful spring of water in the neighbourhood of the castle. Albi the dog has been considered a good spirit of the local brewery cellars for centuries. Thus the dog’s picture was also decorating the emblem of the local malting guild for a long time. Based on an old brewery tradition, the end of the working day in the cellars was always accompanied by a traditional ritual. When leaving, the youngest apprentice was supposed to prepare a jug of beer and pour it into Albi’s bowl. This should have ensured the dog’s favour so as to bring good luck and protect the old ale brewers’work – the famous Czech lager.
After the Cheb region had been annexed to the Czech Kingdom by Jan Lucemburský in 1322, the little castle lost its importance and gradually expired. The abandoned rocky area and the spring gave an impulse to brewing. The oldest written document about the local brewery dates back to 1573.
The oldest preserved documents about the amount of the beer produced date back to 1634. At that time, 1,920 pails of beer were brewed, which is 1,173 hectolitres (1 Czech pail equals 61.117 litres). The Theresa Register states that in 1749 the annual production was 896 barrels, which is 2,155 hectolitres (1 Austrian barrel equals 240.552 litres). In 1861 the brewery suffered from a huge fire, which completely destroyed the original buildings.
The then owner, Earl Berchem, had a new brewery built over the original rock cellars in 1862, whose image can be seen until these days. During the inter-war years, the brewery reached the highest production in 1925. It was 61,783 hectolitres. At that time the brewery already owned 47 inns and approximately 600 others were buying the beer based on fixed contracts. This annual production was not outdone until the 1960s.
Brewery today
Since 1992, Chodovar has been a limited liability company and has played a completely independent role on the market. The company is formed by four co-partners: RNDr. Tomáš Zuckermann, Jiří Plevka Sr., Jiří Plevka Jr. and Jan Plevka. The Plevka family also cope with the actual running of the brewery.
The annual production reaches 90 thousand hectolitres of beer and tapped mineral water. The malt house provides 1,700 tons of malt yearly, including special malts for brewing dark beer.
The beautiful historic brewery premises are also a sought-after tourist destination. For the guests they offer attractive environment of a stylish restaurant situated in a part of a rock labyrinth of the brewery cellars, a little brewery museum, the wellness hotel U SLÁDKA*** with the original beer baths or a restaurant and beerrarium in the historical malt house building.
The brewery premises are adjoined by a brewery garden providing seating for up to 3 000 guests. The garden is also a spot where the traditional beer festival and European championship in rolling oak barrels take place.