October 1, 2005
Cerveza Potro
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
October 12, 2003
Casta Bruna
Price comparison: About a buck more than I pay for everyday beer. Not bad.
Alcohol percentage by volume: 5.35%
Cute bottle/label? Four-pack of 12-ounce brown glass bottles. Label is a painting of a collage of bottles, done in the Oaxacan style. I can honestly say I bought the beer at least in part because I was attracted to the label art.
Appearance: Dark reddish brown; clear and bubbly. The head didn't retain at all, but did leave a bit of fizz floating on top.
Scent: Cranberries and malt.
Flavor: Malty, with just enough bitterness to make it interesting. There's a bit of a sweetness-with-acidity, like honey-lemon tea, in the background.
Impressions: I was looking for a new beer to have with Mexican food because I seem to have lost my taste for Corona. This pale ale comes off like a cross between one of the Belgian pale ales and an English bitter, closer to the English, but still, very pleasant and refreshing. I don't think I'd mind this by itself, but it comes off as pretty versatile, in that it would pair just as well with nachos and guacamole as it would with empanadas or carne asada. I also see no reason not to have this with a slice of pizza.
Will I buy this beer again? We eat a lot of Mexican food around here.
Rating:
3½ out of 5 cute beer glasses