The tradition of brewing in Poland reaches back to medieval times, times of the Slavic people and the beginnings of Polish statehood. Beer was the most popular alcoholic beverage among the Slavs, who spread the skill of treating beer brew with cone hops in order to improve the taste of the drink. In the Middle Ages, beer with a low alcohol content and unfiltered initially – was the everyday drink in Europe. For a long time, beer was considered healthier than water, not without a reason; boiling got rid of at least some of the germs. Beer in Poland quickly became a favorite and popular beverage, and with the development of medieval cities, there was a rapid development of brewing. Almost every city could boast of one or more breweries. Until the 17th century the type of beer mainly produced was wheat beer, which was later superseded by barley.
In this article, I will give you not only a list of those beers that are popular on the Polish market as well as foreign, but also the less well-known beers, I dare say worthy of bigger attention than the commercial ones.
The leading beer market definitely belongs to Lech, Zywiec, Tyskie, Warka, Zubr, Debowe, Redd’s, Tatra and Okocim. The recipes for these beers were created in Poland. Beer is mostly produced in Poland, although breweries holdings, in which they are produced, belong to world-famous corporations such as SABMiller, Heineken International, or Carlsberg.
Lech
Lager beer, produced in three variants
Lech Premium, Lech Mocne (Strong) 6.2% 14.8%,
Lech Free – according to my opinion, the best non-alcoholic beer that I’ve tried,
as well as beer pils – Lech Pils ABV 5.5% 11.7% extract content.
Tyskie Gronie
produced in the pilsner style.
Tyskie Ksiazece – abv 5.7% and 12% of the beer extract. Due to less bitterness and more gentle flavor, it’s a lager beer.
Tyskie Książęce Pszeniczne – wheat beer.
Zubr (Bison)
pasteurized premium lager beer, brewed on the basis of barley malt.
Produced in variants:
Zubr – ABV 6.0, beer extract 12%,
Zubr Ciemnozloty – 6.9% ABV beer extract 15%
Debowe Mocne
Debowe Mocne (Strong Oak) – This is a strong lager beer with bottom-fermenting with beer extract content of 14.5 ° BLG, abv 7%
Redd’s Flavored Beer
Produced in variants:
Redd’s Apple – apple flavored.
Redd’s Red – raspberry flavor with a clear, slightly reddish color.
Redd’s Sun – with a citrus taste.
Redd’s Cranberry – cranberry flavor (Limited Edition Autumn 2011).
Zywiec
famous Polish lager beer.
Produced in variants: Zywiec Beer, Zywiec Bock, Zywiec Full Light
Low-alcohol Zywiec – extract content: 6.5%, alcohol content: 1.1%
and Zywiec Porter – an extract content: 22%, alcohol content: 9.5%,
Warka
Warka – bottom-fermented lager beer, extract containing 12.5% and 5.7% alcohol.
Tatra
Tatra Jasne Pełne – extract content: 11.9%, abv 6%
Tatra Mocne (Strong) – extract content: 14% (w), abv7%
Tatra Grzaniec (Mulled Tatra) – extract content: 16%, abv 5.8%
Okocim
Okocim beer on the Polish market:
Okocim Premium Pils – Lager abv 5.6%
Okocim Premium Mocne – Lager abv 7.1%
Okocim Porter – porter bałtycki (Baltic Porter) abv 8.3%
Okocim Pszeniczne – Wheat beer abv 5%
This is a list of the most popular Polish beers available throughout the country.
Lesser known Polish Beers
Now, I present you a list of Polish beers which are less known, sometimes even not available in every part of Poland but popular among connoisseurs and beer lovers, those who value, above all, the taste of real beer and not only as percentages.
The production of these beers, unfortunately, is not as high as in those well-advertised, but you can also find them in some pubs and stores on the shelves of regional beer. I encourage you to purchase regional beers. Sometimes taste may surprise you and you will be able to say you’ve tried something unusual .
Browar Ciechan – Ciechan Brewery
Ciechan Miodowe (Honey) – Honey beer has a unique taste, nutritious and healthy, Honey-gold color and flavor give it an absolute uniqueness.
Ciechan Przeniczne (wheat) – is characterized by abundant foam and at the bottom of the glass or bottle deposit lees. Wheat beer is not filtered and has a unique aromatic quality of taste, nutritious and healthy. The brewery also produces beers in the variants Ciechan Porter, Ciechan Mocne (Strong), Ciechan Wyborne (Exquisite), Ciechan Stout.
Browar Cornelius – Cornelius brewery
Weizen Bier – Wheat beer with a typical for this species with clove-banana flavor. Cornelius Weizen Bier beer is unpasteurized and unfiltered, and therefore provides a natural yeast sediment, which causes an additional fermentation in the bottle.
Other Products – Premium Lager Beer, Baltic Porter, Ale, Honig Weizer, Greener Bio-Up
Browar Amber – Amber brewery
Żywe (Alive) – lager, amber color, characteristic of large foam, unpasteurized BB 35 days
Koźlak – dark ruby-colored beer, unpasteurized.
Other Products – Grand Imperial Porter, Złote Lwy (Golden Lions), Johannes, Harde, Remus, Mocny Red (Powerful Red), Amber Naturalny.
Browar Kormoran – Cormorant brewery
Kormoran – lager, heavily hopped, golden pasteurized beer.
Podpiwek Warminski – color of dark cherry-brown, low-alcohol 0.5%. An excellent isotonic drink, contains vitamins and minerals, adds energy.
Wisnia w piwie (Cherry in beer) – aged lager with added natural cherry juice. Beer has conquered Europe’s gourmet tastes and was awarded a silver medal at the European Beer Star in Nuremberg.
Other products – Warminski Potrer, Warnijskie, Orkiszowe (Spelt) – wheat beer, Orkiszowe z Miodem (Spelt with Honey), Świeże (Fresh), Rześkie (crisp), Warmiak, Jabłko w Piwie (Apple in Beer), Śliwka w Piwie (Plum in Beer), Podpiwek Warminski.
Browar Konstancin – Konstancin brewery
Dawne (The former) – Pils, unpasteurized, without oxidizing agents, real traditionally brewed beer, fantastic deep taste of bitterness very well-outlined, BB 21 days.
The brewery also produces beers in variations.
Warszawiak – lager, Piwo Przeniczne – Weizenbier, Konstancin Lekki (Light), Konstancin Jasny Pelny (Bright Full), Mazowiecki, Czarny Dab (Black Oak) ABV 7.5%, Rye, Konstancin Bardzo Mocne (very strong) ABV 7.5%
Browar Czarnkow – Czarnków brewery
Noteckie Jasne Pełne – light lager extract containing 12.1% and 5.6% alcohol
Noteckie Niepasteryzowane – light lager extract containing 12.1% and 5.6% alcohol
The brewery produced two species of bottom-fermented beer: light and dark.
Lager – Noteckie, Mountains, Proletaryat
Dark lager – Eire Noteckie, Walloon, dark Proletaryat
Browar Fortuna – Fortuna brewery
Miłosław Pszeniczne – Wheat dark beer, ABV 5.5%
Fortuna Czarne (Black) – malty dark beer, the composition of the recipe comes with caramel malt, and an extract from kola nut tree.
Fortuna Wiśniowa (Cherry) – Beer with natural fruit juice and unmalted wheat.
Other products – Miodowe, Miłosław Pilzner, Miłosław Koźlak, Komes Porter, Czarny Smok (Black Dragon), Czerwony Smok (Red Dragon), Złoty Smok (Golden Dragon), Srebrny Smok (Silver Dragon).