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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Karlovy Vary
Bitter herbal liqueur from Karlovy Vary, sold since 1807 by merchant Josef Vitus Becher. The recipe is kept secret, and the drink is still made in the spa town.
Traditional drink from Karlovy Vary, Karlovy Vary
Also known as: Karlovarská Becherovka, Becher Bitter, English Bitter, Karlsbader Becherbitter
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Becherovka — Karlovy Vary, the Czech Republic
Becherovka is a yellowish herbal liqueur with a simultaneously sweet and bitter taste, featuring notes of clove and cinnamon. It is named after the Becher family of Karlovy Vary and has been produced in the town since the early 19th century.
The drink’s story begins with Josef Vitus Becher, a local merchant and pharmacist, and with the physician Christian Frobrig, who visited the baths escorting a nobleman and reportedly passed on a herbal drink recipe to him. Becher refined the formula and, in 1807, began selling the liqueur as stomach drops under the name English Bitter. Spa guests started taking it home as a souvenir.
His son, Johann Becher, took over the business and built a modern factory, and a relative designed the flattened bottle that still identifies the drink. The recipe remained a secret, known to only a few people.
The liqueur is made from a blend of herbs and spices, some sourced from abroad and some from the region, using Karlovy Vary water. The nickname “thirteenth spring” playfully references the town’s thermal springs. The company maintains a visitor center in Karlovy Vary that presents the family history and offers tastings.
Traditionally, it is served neat and chilled in a small glass as a digestif after a meal.
Karlovy Vary , Karlovy Vary
Created and produced in Karlovy Vary since 1807.
Secret blend of herbs and spices, alcohol, sugar, and Karlovy Vary water.
Neat and chilled, in a small glass after a meal as a digestif. It is also used in cocktails.
All year round, after meals or when visiting Karlovy Vary. The company maintains a visitor center in the town.
Your questions
From Karlovy Vary, where Josef Vitus Becher began selling it in 1807. The drink is still produced in the town.
Traditionally neat and chilled, in a small measure, as a digestif after a meal.
It’s a nickname that playfully references the thermal springs of Karlovy Vary, the town where the liqueur originated and where visitors underwent mineral water treatments.
Flavors of the Czech Republic
Marinated beef roasted with root vegetables, served in slices with a creamy sauce made from those roots and heavy cream. It’s accompanied by bread knedlíky, whipped cream, cranberry jam and a slice of lemon. It’s the celebratory dish most associated with Czech cuisine.
Roast pork from the oven, served with slices of knedlík, sweet-and-sour cabbage and the pan juices. The name combines, in popular usage, the three words of the dish: pork, knedlík and cabbage. It appears on the menu of inns throughout the country.
Lager beer from České Budějovice, in South Bohemia, with a protected geographical indication from the European Union: only beer brewed in the town may use the name. It is produced by two local breweries, Budějovický Budvar and Samson, and is at the center of a long dispute over the name Budweiser.
Thermal wafers from Karlovy Vary: two thin, round sheets joined by a layer of sweet filling. They are made with water from the town’s springs and have protected geographical indication from the European Union since 2011.
Honey cake with spices from Pardubice, hand-filled or hand-decorated with icing. It has been a local tradition since the 16th century and has been a European Union protected geographical indication since 2008.
A pale bottom-fermented lager brewed in Pilsen since 1842, when Bavarian brewer Josef Groll made the first batch at the town’s new brewery. It is considered the world’s first pale lager and gave its name to the pilsner style.
Large round pie made from leavened dough from Chodsko, the region around Domažlice in the Plzeň region. It is decorated with stripes of fresh cheese, plum jam and poppy seed, with almonds and raisins.
Cones of gingerbread-like dough spiced and rolled into an ear shape, made in Štramberk, Moravia. They were the first Czech food product to receive European Union protected geographical indication and are linked to a legend about the Tatar invasion of 1241.
Plum brandy from Moravia, associated especially with Moravian Wallachia and Moravian Slovakia in the Zlín region. Made from fermented and distilled plums, it generally ranges from 40 to 55% alcohol and is part of local festivals and hospitality.
A large, thin round cake made from leavened dough from Moravian Wallachia, topped with fruit filling, poppy-seed filling or fresh cheese. It has a protected geographical indication from the European Union since 2013.
