How to drink tastefully in Europe’s great boozy cities

It’s no surprise that Prague has decided to shake off its reputation as a stag-party destination. By recently banning night-time pub crawls between 10pm and 6am – especially those organised by travel agencies – in order to target “more cultured” tourists, the city’s officials are simply acknowledging what many of us have known for a long time: the Czech capital has long outgrown its cheap and cheerful post-1989 reputation, and now offers a decidedly more cosmopolitan experience.

That applies to the realm of boozing too. While a certain proportion of tourists will always find themselves in the overpriced and overrun traps of Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, today’s Prague is better-known among locals and well-prepared (or repeat) visitors alike for its atmospheric medieval cellar bars, edgy craft beer taprooms, and array of dapper spots where excellent Czech wines and mixology-level cocktails are on offer – all without fear of running into a group of loud men dressed as nuns.

Prague

Fans of traditional Czech beer that want to avoid the crowds can head to the tranquil Strahov Monastery Brewery. Located close to Prague Castle, it has been a brewery since the 13th century and boasts a great restaurant (St Norbert) that serves Czech cuisine as well as a pub-style interior and pleasant courtyard terrace where its three unfiltered beers (an amber lager, a dark lager and an IPA) and rotating seasonal brews are served.

You can get a more local and contemporary Dva Kohouti in Karlín, a post-industrial space where staff sporting beards and tattoos serve up delicious craft beers spanning pilsners, lagers, IPAs, sours and more. In summer, the large courtyard even hosts food trucks and pop-up kitchens.

A decent selection of Czech wines, the vast majority of which hail from Moravia, can be sampled at Bokovka, a charming cellar-style bar with a shabby-chic interior tucked away in an unrenovated historic courtyard. For sophisticated tipples, pull up a stool or book a private booth at 1920s-style speakeasy throwback L’Fleur, whose menu switches between classic and cutting-edge cocktails and includes more than 300 champagnes and wines.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam, another of Europe’s great drinking cities, has also been clamping down on boisterous tourists of late. The city’s controversial online “stay away” campaign last year was aimed specifically at young British men entering phrases such as “stag party Amsterdam”, “cheap hotel Amsterdam” and “pub crawl Amsterdam” into search engines, showing ads outlining the risks and consequences – criminal records, health hazards, fines – of excessive behaviour resulting from drugs and alcohol.

Amsterdam’s rich brewing history dates back to the Middle Ages, and the city offers an impressive range of traditional and trendy breweries that are far removed from its reputation as a sleazy party city. Of special note are its bruin cafés (or brown cafés) – cosy, traditional pub-like spaces so-named for their wood-heavy, often nicotine-stained, interiors (though smoking indoors has been banned since 2008).

In fact, a stag group would have quite a job squeezing into Café De Dokter, the city’s smallest example at just 18 square metres, even if they wanted to. Founded in 1798 by a surgeon, it’s impossibly quaint inside, complete with candle-lit tables and antique chandeliers, and a drinks list that spans Limburg beer, house wines and an extensive whisky collection.

Brown cafés also often enjoy some crossover with the city’s jenever tasting houses (proeflokaals) at which you can sample different varieties of this proto-gin, traditionally served in a tulip-shaped glass, and often along with a decent selection of beers. At the central De Drie Fleschjes (“the three little bottles”), the oldest tasting room in the city, dating back to 1650, you can even try a kopstootje or “a little head butt” – a jenever alongside a glass of beer. Proeflokaal A van Wees serves up more than 17 different types of jenever, plus wines and beers in a former distillery on the Herengracht canal.

Trendier tipples can be had at the renowned Brouwerij ‘t IJ in Oost, which has a tasting room in an old bath house, a famous neighbouring windmill, and has been producing craft beers on-site for more than 30 years. Those seeking something stronger or more refined won’t struggle either: Hiding in Plain Sight, a dark, intimate bar tucked away in the city centre has classic and bespoke cocktails; while some of the wonderful concoctions at the Flying Dutchmen Cocktails bar are based on recipes that are up to 400 years old.

Munich

Another great European beer city, Munich isn’t officially fighting off rambunctious revellers – but visitors might well prefer a classier experience than the annual lederhosen-and-Schlager frenzy known as Oktoberfest. Thankfully that’s entirely possible, even in some of the city’s bigger brewhouses. Der Pschorr, the brewery of Munich institution Hacker-Pschorr, for example, enjoys a wonderful location at the popular Viktualienmarkt – an upscale food court – and its indoor restaurant and outdoor garden are vibrant places to gather.

If you want to try other German beers, pop into the Viktualienmarkt’s own beer garden, which alternates its offerings between local breweries such as Augustiner, Löwenbräu, Hacker-Pschorr and Paulaner.

Craft beer fans are in luck here too: Tap-House has a comely wood-and-brick interior and a selection of 200 craft brews – including around 40 on tap – from local brewers, as well as imports from Belgium, Italy and beyond. For something more intimate and local, Haderner – brewed in the west Munich suburb of the same name (Hadern) – is a family business that has some delicious bio-beers. The brewhouse also runs tours, hosts courses and offers tasting sessions.

Germany is, of course, almost as famous for its wines as its beers. The well-established Vinothek by Geisel, located inside the Excelsior by Geisel, is all vaulted ceilings and wood-panelled Bavarian cosiness; its extensive menu spans all the rieslings, silvaners, weißburgunders and traminers you could ever wish to try, from every significant region in the country (and the food is excellent, too).

But for the ultimate artful booze experience? Head for the city’s Goldene Bar inside the Haus der Kunst museum. The interior is as lush as it sounds – from the old maps to the modernist chandelier – but the expansive terrace is a particularly ideal setting for a sundowner. Order the signature drink – a classy amalgam of London No 3 gin, fresh lemon, Janisson-Baradon champagné, and gin and tonic foam – and admire the southern fringes of the English Garden (and impressive lack of lederhosen).