Various Latin American Beers

From L to R: Barba Roja Stout (Argentina), Patricia Dunkel (Uruguay), Bucanero Fuerte (Cuba), Patagonia Pale Ale (Chile)

My experience with beer in other Latin American countries is similar to most traveler's experiences with beer in Mexico. If you are lucky you get a choice between clara and obscura, other times you get a choice between a light beer and an extra light beer. So, if I happen to find a beer in Mexico from another Latin American country that looks more interesting I won't hesitate to try it. I don't know if these beers in their own countries are considered cerveza artesanal or not since I've never had them in their country of origin, but they are all at least a step above the usual swill that passes for beer.

Barba Roja - I've only tried this stout from Barba Roja, but I've seen several other less appealing styles they make, like a pale ale with herbs and flowers. According to their website, they make 13 different styles but I've only seen three available in Mexico. (If someone knows where to find their smoked red ale, let me know!). This stout is a fairly standard stout, similar in body and flavor to a Sierra Nevada Stout. It is a little too light-bodied for me, but it is very drinkable and a well made beer. My local Superama has a special section dedicated to Argentine products, and that is where I found this beer. I haven't seen it available anywhere else, although there must be an Argentine restaurant somewhere in the city that serves this beer.

Patricia - Pictured above is a Patricia Dunkel, which I was not a big fan of. It is an ok brown ale, but much sweeter than I like. I've also had their porter and their lager. Patricia's porter is a really good beer and worth trying if you like porters. The lager is decent as well, although not particularly special. I've seen the porter and lager for sale for about 25 pesos a bottle at City Market in Colonia del Valle. The dunkel is available at the Beer Company in Coyoacán (along with the porter). If you happen across an Uruguayan restaurant in the city, you are also likely to find Patricia beers. I've found it available in Uruguayan restaurants in Colonia Narvarte and Condesa.

Bucanero - The Bucanero Fuerte from Cuba is a strong lager with 5.4%ABV. They also make an extra strong lager (Bucanero Max) with 6.5%ABV, but I have not seen it available anywhere in Mexico. I was pretty disappointed with this beer, it isn't much different from a Heineken, but with a slight sourness to it. I've seen Bucanero at The Beer Company and at La Belga.

Cerveza Austral - This Pale Ale from Chile is pretty awful for a pale ale. It is very malty, with almost no hops discernible in the nose or the taste. It is drinkable, but if you are expecting a pale ale this will be a serious letdown. I found this at The Beer Company, along with a few other styles from the same brewery which I am now unlikely to try.

Graciela, Taller de Cerveza - Part 2

Last week I blogged about a new brewpub that just opened up in Colonía Roma, Graciela Taller de Cerveza. On my first visit, they only had a couple Tempus beers on tap but their menu did state they were going to have a draft pale ale in the future. Well, I just returned from there and their house draft beers are now available. They offer a blond ale, a brown ale, and a pale ale, none of which are available in bottles from Cervecería Primus, the owners of the bar. All three beers are excellent and I highly recommend trying them out. The pale ale is a solid English-style pale, the brown ale is slightly hoppy and very drinkable, and the blond is one of the best I've had from a Mexican craft brewer. Unfortunately I did not have my camera with me, but that just gives me an excuse to return soon to take pictures and write up some more detailed reviews of these great new additions to the craft brew scene in Mexico City.

Cervecería Hacienda

Catrina Red Ale, <7%ABV, 0 out of 5

Hidalgo Stout, <7%ABV, 0 out of 5

Jaguar Pale Ale, <7%ABV, 0 out of 5

Cervecería Hacienda made by Hacienda San Juan Pueblilla out of Hidalgo, produces three different beers, a red ale, a stout, and a pale ale. The best thing I can say about these beers is that they have really cool labels, and it seems other people agree. It may be that there was something wrong with the batch from which I drank these beers, but I sort of doubt it. In the Fall of 2010, I had tried the pale ale and the stout and remember them being rather unpleasant. For the sake of the blog, I decided to give these beers another shot. The stout and the red ale I drank in Oaxaca at El Olivo, the pale ale was purchased at La Belga in Mexico City. All three of these beers were incredibly sour, and did not even remotely resemble the style of beer. A pale ale without the taste of hops? check. A stout without the flavor of roasted malts? check. The red ale? I don't even know what they were attempting there.  The closest thing these beers resemble is a poor attempt at a home-brewed cider.

It is really unfortunate that these beers are completely undrinkable, I really wanted to like them. I'm a bid fan of Hidalgo state, and want to see some quality beer come out of there. Hopefully the brewers at Cervecería Hacienda spend some time on their recipe and engage in some serious quality control. My guess is that something is going wrong in the bottling process that is ruining the beer, but I could be wrong.