Velkopopovický Kozel Brewery Was Visited by More Than 25,000 Tourists This Year

The celebrated 25,000th visitor is Mr. Petr Kuldan from Strašnice. “I love Kozel. My favourite one is Kozel Medium 11°. I am glad I decided to come to see the brewery today and saw how my favourite beer is made. The brewery visit was truly a unique experience. I most enjoyed the tasting of unfiltered Kozel beer directly in the lager cellars. I also enjoyed the presence of the live billy-goat that is an inseparable part of the brewery, supervising the production of the beer. I will recommend the visit to all my friends and acquaintances and I will return myself,” Mr. Kuldan said of his experience. From the manager of the brewery, Jaroslav Hacek, he received the certificate of the honorary guest and Velkopopovický Kozel beer for home.

The interest in visiting the brewery in Velké Popovice is on the rise. “People come to our brewery to see where and how their favourite beer is made. They often come to meet the master brewer and to taste the fresh beer directly, right in the lager cellars,” Jaroslav Hacko, manager of the Velké Popovice brewery said. Eva Kršňáková, director of the brewery’s visitor center of the brewery in Velké Popovice added: “Since 2007, when we welcomed about 10,000 visitors per year, the number of visitors is constantly on the rise.
In 2012, 28,000 people came to the brewery during the season and this year, we have already welcomed 25,000 fans of Velkopopovický Kozel on our visitors’ tours. 60% of visitors interested in the visitors tour of the Velké Popovice brewery are from our country. These visitors come individually, especially during the spring and summer months. The brewery is visited by tourists from Russia, Slovakia, and Hungary where the Velkopopovický Kozel is one of the most popular beers.”

Note for editors:

• The first batch of beer was brewed in Velké Popovice brewery on December 15, 1874, and just one year later, 18,000 hl of beer were brewed and sold. Only a few years later, the brewery became the third biggest brewery in the country. They were famous especially for their dark, heavy beer.
• Velkopopovický Kozel brand is irreplaceable in today’s beer market. It is a brand with the most dynamic rise in Czech as well as foreign markets. Velkopopovický Kozel Dark is the leader among dark beer brands in the Czech beer market, and the best-selling Czech beer abroad.
• Velké Popovice brewery has been a part of Plzeňský Prazdroj Company since 1999.
• There is a restaurant, Velkopopovická Kozlovna, right in the brewery area. The restaurant offers Czech cuisine and a wide assortment of tap beer – especially exceptional 11 degree Velkopopovický Kozel Medium tapped directly from the brewery tanks.
• Visits of the brewery are supported by a number of cultural events that take place there every year. The most important is The Day of Kozel, taking place every June.
• With its total sale of 9,9 million hectolitres during the calendar year of 2012 (including licenced productions abroad) and with its export to more than 60 countries worldwide, Plzeňský Prazdroj Inc. is the prominent beer producer in the region and the biggest exporter of the Czech beer.
• Plzeňský Prazdroj Inc. is a member of SABMiller plc. group. Pilsner Urquell is the international flagship brand of the SABMiller brand portfolio.
• SABMiller is one of the world’s biggest beer brewing companies with beer brewing activities or distribution in more than 60 countries across six continents. SABMiller’s brand group include 200 beer brands such as world-renowned Pilsner Urquell, Miller Genuine Draft, Grolsch, Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Miller Genuine Draft and Grolsch, as well as local brands such as Aguila (Columbia), Castle (South Africa), Miller Lite (USA), Snow (China), Victoria Bitter (Australia) and Tyskie (Poland).

Press contact of Plzeňský Prazdroj Comp. Kateřina Krásová is available to media at:

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Velké Popovice