plzeňský prazdroj, a. s. (, known in english as the pilsner urquell brewery, is a czech brewery founded in 1842 and headquartered in plzeň, czech republic. it was the first brewery to produce pale lager, branded as pilsner urquell; the popularity of pilsner urquell resulting in it being much copied so that more than two-thirds of the beer produced in the world today is pale lager, sometimes named "pils", "pilsner" and "pilsener" after pilsner urquell. the brewery name, "pilsner urquell", which can be roughly translated into english as "the original source at pilsen", was adopted as a trademark in 1898. pilsner urquell is the largest beer producer in the czech republic and is also the largest exporter of beer abroad.