The decaying but historical old brewery in Nusle is getting revamped in an ambitious new project by Penta Investment Group.
History of the Nusle brewery dates back to the 17th century, but even long before that, the Nusle area was a hub for growing hops and wine. In the 19th century the brewery was one of the most important in Prague and the largest industrial brewery in central Europe, producing over 15 000 hectalitres of beer per year.
The brewery grew fast despite dealing with new competition from the breweries in Smíchov. Running a brewery wasn’t as easy and technological back then, and brewery managers constantly had to innovate, modernize, and deal with the growing bureaucracy all while having good relationships with pub owners.
Right after Czechoslovakia was born, the Nusle brewery came up with a new dark beer called Prelát which became very popular among Czechs. However, the popularity did not last long as both world wars meant drastically lowering production before the brewery itself was almost destroyed.
After the second war, the communist party gained power and started with seizing just about everything. The brewery stopped producing beer in 1960, but production was steadily declining from 1948 onwards.
By October of 1960, the last beer had been brewed and the brewery was repurposed for wine production for Grébovka Park. Nobody was able to take proper care of the enormous building over the years, and after the Velvet revolution it became very neglected and dilapidated.
In 2003 the brewery was listed as a national monument and not long after that it was bought by Penta Investment Group.
Penta has massively ambitious plans for the historical brewery and plans to start renovations this year. The project plans on building residential buildings to accommodate up to 400 apartments and also aims to create new office spaces.
Penta wants to open restaurants (small brewery included), cafés, shops and revitalize the Botič (the small stream that runs through the neighbourhood) by building a small bridge over it that leads to the building.To connect itself with the surrounding areas, the area will have meadows bridging the brewery with closeby parks Folimanka and Grébovka.
The project has the potential to be a huge win for Czech history and the seeding of a new cultural hub in Prague.
