Corazón de Maguey

Corazón de Maguey is a great mescalería located on the plaza in Coyoacán. In addition to a large selection of mezcal, they brew their own beer, and offer a few beers from Minerva and TJ Beer. They also have excellent food, offering interesting versions of traditional Oaxacan cuisine. On my recent visit, they had a special insect menu offering various dishes with gusanos de maguey, chapulines, escamoles, and hormigas chicatanas. Their own craft beers are excellent as well, making this one of favorite places to visit whenever I am in Coyoacán.


Blond Ale

4 out of 5

This blond ale has a nice bready flavor and is very easy to drink. It is slightly watery, but still a very solid beer.

 Imperial Stout w/cacao

5 out of 5

The imperial stout is one of the best stouts I have tasted made by a Mexican brewer. It is full bodied as an imperial stout should be, with great flavors of chocolate, coffee, and vanilla. There is a slight alcohol flavor to it, but it isn't that off-putting.

 Red Ale w/Agave

2 out of 5


This red ale is extremely disappointing. Not only is it the most expensive of their craft beers, but it is also the worst. Both times that I have tried this beer, it has been sour without much flavor. The agave gives it a slight vegetable flavor, but overall this beer is pretty bland.

Porter

4 out of 5

This medium-bodied porter has a nice toasted malt flavor, as one should expect from a porter, and is also slightly hoppy. It is also very easy to drink. The one complaint is that it is slightly watery. Nevertheless, I will keep coming back to this beer.










The beers at Corazón de Maguey are fairly consistent over time, although occasionally I will get a beer that is not as good as it was on my previous visit. The first time I had the Blond Ale, it was not as bready as it was on my most recent visit. The Imperial Stout is also sometimes a little flat and sometimes tastes more like alcohol than on other visits. However, these are minor quibbles and I almost always enjoy the beer here (except the Red Ale).

The prices at Corazón de Maguey are fairly high, with the craft beers running anywhere from 60-85 pesos. Beers from Minerva and TJ Beer are about 60 pesos. But, the atmosphere is great and the quality of the food and drink is high.

Corazón de Maguey is located at Plaza Jardín Centenario 9-A, right in the center of Coyoacán. You can also visit them on facebook or check out their website to peak at their menu. If you do not know how to get to the center of Coyoacán, the easiest way is to exit the Metro at Viveros or Coyoacán stops, and catch a cab. It is also walkable. Check out the map to find the best route. Finally, there are buses that leave from the Coyoacán metro stop that head towards the plaza (opposite the mall).

Baja Red

Baja Brewing Company Red Ale

6%ABV

5 out of 5

Baja Brewing Company is based out of Baja California Sur and was formed in 2007 by several Americans from Colorado (at least that is the story I get from their website). This particular beer, the Baja Red, is a phenomenal Red Ale. Even though the bottle says "ale ambar" this beer is much more full-bodied and full of flavor than amber ales I am familiar with. The only other Baja beer I have had was their oscura especial, which was extremely mediocre. Nevertheless, I look forward to trying some of their other beers if I can find them.

I like a good red ale, but in my experience, they are few and far between. The only other Mexican breweries I know of that make a red ale are Cosaco, with their cerveza roja, and Hacienda Pueblilla, with their Catrina red ale. The Cosaco red ale is atrocious, probably one of the worst beers I have ever had, and while I have not tried the Catrina, I am not a big fan of the other beers made by Hacienda Pueblilla out of Hidalgo (i.e. their pale ale and stout).

I picked up this bottle for 33 pesos at La Belga.

Getting to La Belga: Metrobus - Linea 1, Sonora stop; or Linea 3, Hospital General stop. Metro - Hospital General. (You'll need a map to walk from these stops to La Belga).