Page 74 - UNESCO_Zatec_2021_A4

impression of landscape stability and its beauty, which
changes many times during the year, depending on how
the green walls of hop fields gradually fill it. The power of
nature is evident to anyone who has the opportunity to
see hop fields during the spring and peak season. It also
annually fills the local productive hop culture landscape The Hop Harvest Festival – The Dočesná
with the expectation of the harvest is a real celebration
not only for the inhabitants of the region but for the The Dočesná is the largest festival associated with
whole country. hops and the end of the hop harvest. The whole event
is also a big cultural and beer festival with significant
The beginning and end of the season are celebrated participation of breweries, both beer stalls and the
in the town of Žatec. During the celebrations of spring representatives of individual breweries themselves
– Chmelfest (the Hopfest), many hop growing villages and takes place in Žatec. The Dočesná also has both
organise traditional processions called Chmelmarš (the a cultural and a professional character because it is
Hopmarch). Among them are growers and citizens from associated with visits to the hop harvests in the Saaz
the rural component part. The hard work and year-round region by important Czech and foreign customers, very
efforts of growers need to be properly celebrated, how often they are also customers from Japan or China,
else but with beer from Saaz hops! The various festivities
of the growers, their families, and all those who took for example. The professional part of The Dočesná in
part in the work strengthened the strong hop growing Žatec includes professional beer tastings organised
cultural traditions, among which the Dočesná (the Hop by the Hop Research Institute Co., Ltd. in several
2. Description the locals richly decorate their town with hop plants from of breweries as well as representatives of hop growers
categories, where the jury consists of representatives
Harvest Festival) is an inseparable part. For this purpose,
Stekník and invite guests from a number of countries,
and the town of Žatec. At the beginning of The
with groups staying for several days. Together, they
Dočesná, hop traditions, such as the hand picking of
appreciate the main product using hops – beer. The Žatec
Dočesná, with its tradition and scope, is a celebration of
beer tasting are announced. (See also Chapter 2.b)
the hop harvest which is unique in the world. hops, are mentioned, and the results of professional
Hop-Growers’ Day
74 The quality of hops and the possibilities of their
development were also behind the birth of the tradition Hop-Growers’ Day in Stekník is annually held at
of research and breeding, which is accompanied by the end of the first week of August (component part
international professional events. Czech hops and 01). It is an opportunity for hop growers to meet.
the Saaz hop growing region, in which the nominated Representatives of hop trading companies, breweries,
property Žatec and the Landscape of Saaz Hops is students of agricultural schools, the Ministry of
located, have become concepts of international renown. Agriculture, hop-related authorities, suppliers of
technology and plant protection products, and
the media also take part in the programme. The
professional part includes information on the state of
vegetation and harvest estimates both in the Czech
Republic and abroad (provided by Hop Growers Union
of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Agriculture of the
Czech Republic, Central Institute for Supervising and
Testing in Agriculture, CHMELAŘSTVÍ, cooperative
Žatec and the Hop Research Institute Co., Ltd).
A significant portion of the day is a tour of the hop
plants of different varieties, for which individual
agrotechnical operations and interventions in
protection against diseases and pests are described.

Saint Lawrence Day (Sv. Vavřinec)
The description of a cultural phenomenon of Czech
hop growing must include the celebrations of the
feast of the patron saint of hops, St. Lawrence.
St. Lawrence is the patron saint of librarians,
archivists, the poor, chefs, confectioners, millers,
bakers, innkeepers, glassmakers, winemakers, and
Typical visitors to the Dočesná, Hop Harvest Festival, Žatec, Svobody Square, 2018