History

Historie

Beer brewing in the royal town of Uherský Brod is proud of its long tradition, which dates back to the Middle Ages. Period documents have revealed that even that world-renowned personality from the region of Uherský Brod, Jan Amos Comenius, born on 28 March 1592, came from a brewer's family. His father was a member of the brewers' guild in Uherský Brod. In honour of this teacher of nations, Janáček Brewery produces a 14% light special named Comenius.

The first common brewery, which replaced the previous houses granted the privilege to brew, was built by the townsmen of Uherský Brod in 1614. However, it was destroyed by Swedish troops in 1643, during the Thirty Years War. The second - the lord's brewery - was built in 1652. Originally owned by the town council, it was later bought by the noble family of Kounic, and from 1848 it was leased to various maltsters.

One of the last tenants was a Czech maltster named František Bedřich Janáček (1845–1925). As business relationships with the brewery owner weren't very good, Janáček decided to build a brewery of his own. Construction commenced in 1894 and was completed in 1895.

The brewery operated by Janáček soon became the leader in its category in our country. In the pre-war period, the brewery was well-known for beer exported to other countries, in particular to Southeastern Europe, and gradually took over the markets from obsolete breweries in the region, including that owned by the noble family. In 1914, Jaromír Janáček (1894–1951), the son of F. B. Janáček, became a partner. In 1921 he took over the responsibility for the family business.

Between the wars, the Janáček brewery in Uherský Brod was one of the leading beer producers in Central Europe. Jaromír Janáček, the maltster, operated and developed his family brewery until nationalisation in 1948.