The Ocho

During my recent trip to San Antonio with Aaron, Connoisseur Jon, Jenny, and Liz, I found myself shopping at the local HEB grocery store when I was met with a wondrous sight and, with it, inspiration. The beer cooler had all my favorite Mexican brews in it, along some I had never before tried. I loaded up my shopping cart and, that night, went on a downward spiral, drinking eight different beers over the course of an hour with Aaron, Jenny, and Jon. The rapid succession and ingestion of these largely cheap beers, paired with the copious amount of salty snacks I was chowing down on the entire time, produced the single worst hangover of my life, but that would wait until morning to rear its ugly head. The first two brews of the night were domestic, and the other six were imported from south of the border. On to the beers!

The first beer of the night was Session Premium Lager by Full Sail Brewing Company, whose brew pub Connoisseur Michael visited and reviewed last year. The bottle itself is an 11oz. brown glass bottle, very much along the same lines as a Red Stripe in size and shape. In a nod to the “I am planning to drink 36 of these bad boys with my friends” nature of session beers in general, each twist-off cap has either “Rock”, “Paper”, or “Scissors” printed on the bottom of it, ensuring a night of drunken competition. The beer pours a golden amber color with a quickly dissipating head. It smells lightly malty, with not a lot of character on the nose. The taste is quite delicious, with a quick hit of hops on the attack mellowing to a clean and slightly bitter finish. This beer is best enjoyed while cold as it develops a slight… what could only be described as “uriney” smell as it warms. Session Lager leaves a sticky residue in the mouth that is best defeated with another bottle. I could see drinking a lot of these; Session was definitely one of the hits of the night.

The second beer in the lineup was Lone Star beer. This light lager proved itself a worthy companion over the week we spent in Texas. Brewed locally in the Lone Star State, it was also one of the least expensive beers I found, weighing in at just over $4 for a 6-pack. Under this bottle cap was a cryptic pictograph that made no sense whatsoever. The beer pours a very pale straw color with a quickly dissipating white head. The smell is barely present, one of the weakest scented brews I have ever had, as it smells like virtually nothing. The taste is a step above the domestic macro-brewed beers that we try our damndest to avoid; a little malty sweetness on the attack fading quickly to a clean toasty malt finish. Lone Star is another session beer that would go well with nearly any dish where you don’t want the beer to step on the toes of the food.

The third beer we cracked open was Bohemia Clasica, imported from Mexico. The label features an indigenous tribesman in profile and, if memory serves me correctly, the beer is one of Connoisseur Javier’s favorite brews from his home country. It pours a bright yellow gold color with virtually no head. It smelled a little skunky, but the taste was unharmed. The flavor is strongly laced with piney hops and malt characteristics that are complex for a mass market beer. It did leave a somewhat oily mouthfeel, for what reason nobody could pin down. This was another hit of the night, and Connoisseur Jon put it best when he said, “It leaves you wanting more.”

Number four was Negra Modelo made by the Modelo Brewing Company in Mexico. This was a beer that we had all had a great deal of experience with, Negra Modelo being the beer of choice whenever we make Mexican food or go to The Connoisseur’s favorite Mexican restaurant: Tu Y Yo Mexican Fonda in Somerville. The beer pours a rich dark mahogany amber and a light tan head, that quickly dissipates. The smell is caramelly and deep. The taste is smooth, a little coppery, and sweet. There are caramel popcorn notes and a slightly bloody finish. I generally don’t drink this beer out of a glass, and I must say there is a lot I don’t notice when drinking it from the bottle. After finishing off the bottle we decided that, while Negra Modelo is excellent on its own, it really shines when paired with food, especially something along the lines of carne asada, burritos, or some other type of spiced meat. This is by no means a session beer, more like a welcome accompaniment for a delicious meal.

The fifth beer of the night was our only offering in a can; Modelo Especial made by the Modelo Brewing Company in Mexico. This 24oz can was a steal at somewhere around one dollar. The beer pours a medium gold and has a somewhat persistent white head. It has a musky nose, like rich wet hay. The taste is light, not malty or hoppy at all, but more like sweet grass and apples, very similar to chewing on a stalk of wheat, only with a somewhat unpleasant, savory finish. Modelo Especial has an incredibly low alcohol content that makes the drinking experience one of pure refreshment. We all had visions of working a hard day outside and then cracking open an ice cold can of Modelo Especial. Aaron said that he could see himself drinking one of these while driving a pickup truck, and I felt the need to retort with the following disclaimer, “The Connoisseurs do not… drive often…” We grew tired of this beer quite quickly and Connoisseur Jon quipped that “Especial” in the case of this beer was merely name dressing, not a descriptor, as there was nothing “Especial” about this brew aside from the fact that it is “Especially” cheap.

The sixth beer we cracked into was Tecate, the first of the one quart bottles, of which there were three. I’d had some previous exposure to Tecate and still consider it my favorite Mexican light beer. The label design is very reminiscent of come totalitarian state or European Eastern Bloc country, with cubist Black Eagles and a bold red, gold, and black color scheme throughout, it’s quite dynamic and eye-catching. Tecate pours a medium golden honey color with a thin, white, lacy head. It is bitter on the attack and quickly goes to a rich, wholesome, bready flavor. It has a lightly sweet body, with plentiful soda-like bubbles that segue to a pleasantly subtle honey and popcorn finish.

Seventh in the beer parade of shame was Sol, from Monterrey, Mexico. The clear glass, 1 quart bottle displayed the light golden colored brew, and the beer poured with a very soapy head that didn’t last. One whiff of the opened bottle and we knew we were in trouble. It smells like cheap industrial plastic. The taste was… well all around… yucky. It tastes coppery, artificial, and just terrible. We spent the next 12 minutes, cringing and making fun of Sol. This was by far the worst beer of the night and will gladly avoid this beer in the future.

The final beer of the night was Carta Blanca, another 1 quart beer from Monterrey, Mexico. This beer poured the same light golden color of the majority of the light beers we had that night with a white head that stuck around longer than any other. It smells slightly mossy and citrusy and tastes buttery and coppery. The taste was compared to unfiltered water found in the country, with a slightly mineral and metallic flavor. While nowhere nearly as offensive as the Sol, it was not very popular with any of the tasters, bringing not much more to the party aside from buttery pennies.

Whether you are merely curious what our neighbors to the south have to offer the beer-drinker looking for something light, or find yourself in a cantina down Mexico way, I hope this article helps you navigate the pitfalls and highlights of Mexican cerveza.