Čtvrtá Pípa

A Czech term for the fourth beer tap at a bar.

Bars in Prague are increasingly serving less well-known beers, according to areport by Evan Rail for the Prague Daily Monitor:

It used to be that everyone was aiming for first place. But, today, the position of pride just might be fourth.

Or so it appears with the so-called čtvrtá pípa, or “fourth pipe,” a small but growing trend in pubs in Prague. While most bars here usually tap just three beers from one of the country’s well-known large producers, a growing number of bars have added a fourth tap – or “pipe” – to serve beers from independent brewers.

According to Rail, many of the taps in Prague’s bars and restaurants are installed and owned by large breweries – an arrangement that saves the owners money, but removes their ability to select which drinks they serve:

But for those who want to offer something different, the fourth pipe – so-called because it comes after the traditional lineup of one dark lager, one 10° pale lager and one 12° pale lager – offers a way around the problem. For the fourth pipe, most pub owners buy their own equipment, freeing themselves up to offer whichever beer they want.

Some choose a constant offer of a type of beer that isn’t made by their regular suppliers, such as a yeast beer, wheat beer or ale. Many pubs follow the route charted by První Pivní Tramway, one of the first to employ a fourth tap, serving a constantly changing lineup of different kegs from different brewers.