Encouraged by the unseasonably warm summer and overall lack of snow on the ground, a couple of friends and I ventured to the promised land—Bootleggers—in search of spring beers to celebrate the end of this disappointing winter.
We were shocked to discover that the spring beers had already been cleared from the shelves and replaced with summer seasonals.
I toyed for a while with the idea of getting a head start on summer beers, but, I must confess, I'm still holding out for one last snowstorm and a glorious day of spring snowboarding. Drinking a summer beer would be to abandon all hope.
Instead, I did what anyone would do in that situation. I wandered the aisles looking for something to catch my eye.
I was drifting dangerously close to the wine coolers when a friend, fully aware of my animosity for Corona, called out, "How about Mexican beers?" I snorted derisively before pausing to consider the proposition.
Yes, I would always rather stay sober than drink a Corona, but I shouldn't hastily dismiss all Mexican beers because of its faults.
It struck me as odd that all of the beers made in Mexico were grouped together in one cooler, even though there were clearly of different styles.
The Mexican beer in Bootleggers deserved a fair shot, so I made up my mind on the spot.
Pacifico Clara Lager (4.8 percent ABV) was the first beer tasted, and the very instant I opened a bottle I inhaled a quick whiff of Corona and almost changed my topic on the spot. I'm glad I didn't, though, because the first sip turned out to be decent.
The taste was very mild, with a slight bitter note and a very mild malt flavor.
I would liken this beer to perhaps Keystone or PBR. The grain was clearly low quality, and the beer had no mouthfeel. It must be designed to be drank quickly, because that is about the only option. At this point, a friend recommended that we add lime and salt on the rim, but I must caution against it for this beer. It only worsened the taste.
Dos Equis Amber Lager (4.7 percent ) poured a deep amber, which made the sweet flavor fairly surprising.
It had only a light malt and caramel flavor and no hops, lending this beer a slight, but not overpowering sweetness. A mild latent bitterness evened out the malt, leaving a fairly balanced flavor.
The carbonation was light, the aftertaste was pretty much nonexistent, and the beer provided an overall taste that was much more flavorful and enjoyable than the Pacifico.
Negra Modelo Lager (5.4 percent ) also poured a fairly dark amber and had very little flavor.
The Negra Modelo, however, was a good deal sweeter than the Dos Equis Amber, and lacking a bitter counterbalance, the flavor was severely and unpleasantly one-sided.
The malt itself was underplayed, and I really feel like this beer must have been artificially sweetened. If you don't mind sweetness, this beer is worth a sip, but otherwise I would pass.
Dos Equis Special Lager (4.3 percent) proved to be an extremely vexing beer. It poured light with a mild hoppy and grainy aroma. The taste was a standard light lager flavor, with little hop and less malt and some additional element that none of us could identify—it almost seemed spiced.
The mouthfeel was perhaps the best out of the bunch with a healthy amount of carbonation. The aftertaste was slightly bitter but rather pleasant.
The mystery flavor enticed some and repulsed others, but I quite enjoyed this beer and would drink it again.
Modelo Especial Lager (4.4 percent) immediately smelled awful with very sweet notes of corn. The taste was similarly sweet, though it also included that ineffable skunked quality that I strongly associate with Corona.
Thankfully, the flavor was muted enough that I could choke down a few sips before passing the rest off on an unsuspecting bystander. I would certainly never recommend this beer to anyone I liked.
Tecate Lager (4.5 percent) also smelled so incredibly sweet that I nearly gave up without taking a sip. It poured surprisingly dark, and tasted amazingly sweet with none of the depth of flavor malt normally provides. This unbalanced sweetness had proved to be an enduring theme throughout the tasting.
At wit's end, I squeezed a bit of lime into my cup and put salt on the rim, and I was completely astounded at the drink's transformation.
The lime and salt made this beer very unique with a wide range of flavor notes where it had failed to positively impact any of the others. I would definitely drink this beer again, preferably on a hot summer day, but only if I had salt and lime handy.
All in all, the two offerings by Dos Equis proved to be the most popular and palatable, so you owe it to yourself to taste them both.
The Tecate was surprisingly enjoyable with lime and salt as well, though without the accompaniment of salt and lime it is decidedly unpleasant.