Country of Origin: Mexico
Price comparison: About $3 per sixteen ounces.
Alcohol percentage by volume: 4.7%
Cute bottle/label? 25 ounce cobalt-blue bottle with a squat base and extreme long neck. Label is silver and blue; very eye-catching and attractive.
A tag hung round the neck by a silver elasticized cord gives a bit of history: The Cervecera Mexicana, an old name in Mexican brewing trying to reestablish itself, apparently bought a brewery in Illinois and had its equipment dismantled, shipped in twenty flat rail cars to Guanajuato, and reassembled.
Appearance: Very dark, with a thin brownish head and no lacing.
Scent: Nice, grainy scent like cornmeal or toasted white bread.
Flavor: A thin bitterness like unsweetened instant coffee, with a slightly chocolate reminiscence as it warmed, but very little in terms of fruit or hoppiness. I wished it tasted as good as it smelled.
Impressions: I have been on the lookout for more Mexican beers, because I don't care for Corona, XX and Modelo are decent but get boring from their mere ubiquitousness, and Casta, my favorite, isn't always readily available. I was immediately attracted to this based on its pretty bottle, but its low ABV and lack of character were kind of disappointing.
Seemed kind of silly, when they could just as easily have left those vats in Illinois.
Will I buy this beer again? About the only reason I see for buying this again myself is if I decide I want another of these pretty blue bottles so I'll have a pair. I think they'd make nice candlesticks.
If you like porters, you might want to try this, just for the experience of it, but I'd be more inclined to recommend a different brand to fans of the variety. Given a choice at a Mexican restaurant between this and, say, Heineken, I'd personally grab the Heinie (or, more likely, drink soda or water).
Rating:
2 out of 5 cute beer glasses
Reviewed: October 1, 2005
