¡Viva Tijuana! What’s new in brew from south of the border
Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico April 1st, 2017: | Tijuana's craft brewery scene. Baja Craft Beer also known as BCB Tasting Room located in Colonia Neidhart. | Alejandro Tamayo © The San Diego Union Tribune 2017 (Alejandro Tamayo /)
By Peter Rowe
Editor's note: ¡Viva Tijuana! is a multi-story series about the life and culture of San Diego's modern neighbor to the south. More stories from the series can be found in links below.PACIFIC's San Diego craft beer column heads south of the border for a momentito. ¡Salud!
Do me a flavor: A seis-pack of Tijuana cervezas
Cappuccino Stout
(4.5 percent alcohol)
Cerveza Artesanal 5 y 10's coffee stout tantalizes with first-cup-in-the-morning aromas, light body and smooth coffee and cream flavors. Cerveza Artesanal 5 y 10 (Located at Beer Balcony in Plaza Fiesta) Paseo de los Héroes 9415 Zona Urbana Río, 22010, Tijuana, B.C. Charlie Brown (5.5 percent alcohol)
Baja Craft Beer also known as BCB Tasting Room located in Colonia Neidhart. Ruben Valenzuela Hernandez, the 40-year-old co-founder and CEO of Tijuana's BCB Tasting Room. (Alejandro Tamayo /Union Tribune) (Alejandro Tamayo /)
It's tough to make an exciting brown ale; Norte's version thrills. Its caramel base teased by bracing hops.
Norte Brewing Co.
(Foreign Club parking lot)
Calle Cuarta, 720, Fifth floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.638.4891, facebook.com
Güerra Prieta
(4.5 percent alcohol)
Yes, Border Psycho made this to entice timid Tecate drinkers. I don't care. This coffee and vanilla cream ale is an easy-drinking winner.
Border Psycho Brewery
Libertad 1751
Col. Azcona, 22055, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.379.1235, borderpsychobrewery.com
Norte Brewing Co.
(Foreign Club parking lot)
Calle Cuarta, 720, Fifth floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.638.4891, facebook.com
Güerra Prieta
(4.5 percent alcohol)
Yes, Border Psycho made this to entice timid Tecate drinkers. I don't care. This coffee and vanilla cream ale is an easy-drinking winner.
Border Psycho Brewery
Libertad 1751
Col. Azcona, 22055, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.379.1235, borderpsychobrewery.com
Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico April 1st, 2017: | Tijuana's craft brewery scene. Border Psycho: Prudish beer-lovers beware at Border Psycho, a brewery whose tasting room can be found in the lively and revamped bar hub of Plaza Fiesta. | Alejandro Tamayo © The San Diego Union Tribune 2017 (Alejandro Tamayo /)
La Lupulosa
(7.3 percent alcohol)
By making a hop-heavy American-style IPA, Insurgente announced its big-league ambitions. By making this complex, fruity, refreshing IPA, the upstart became a binational legend.
Cervecería Insurgente
Juan Cordero 10021
Zona Urbana Río, 22010, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.634.1242, cervezainsurgente.com
Nox Arcana
(9 percent alcohol)
A silky imperial stout from Fauna, a Mexicali brewery with a popular Tijuana tasting room. Roasted coffee and bittersweet chocolate is submerged in bourbon and vanilla.
Cerveza Fauna Tasting Room
Paseo de los Héroes 9415, Ste. 3
Zona Urbana Río, 22010, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.163.7467
Sex on the Peach
(6.1 percent alcohol)
Mamut's wild ale brewed with peaches is funky, tart and clean. Savor - the fruit flavors become brighter, fresher after a few sips.
Mamut Brewery Co.
Calle Tercera, 8161, Second floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.685.0137, mamutcerveza.com
Coming to a head: Explore Tijuana's brave new beer world in three easy stops
Germán Alcázar's first impression of Norte, a brewery wedged onto the fifth floor of a downtown Tijuana parking lot:
"What the hell? This won't work."
Somehow it does. Eighteen months later, Norte (and its brewer, Alcázar) are key players in one of North America's best beer cities.
Unfamiliar with this vibrant scene? Take a three-stop tour:
1. BCB Tasting Room
Industrial-chic BCB pours 300 beers, including 42 on tap. Order food from the kitchen - the ribeye sandwich, $11.75, is scrumptious - then a brew from Border Psycho, Ramuri or other Baja stars (pints are $2.50 to $4).
For almost five years, BCB has been introducing customers to full-flavored ales and lagers.
"People weren't fully sold on the craft beer thing," says co-owner Felipe Vera. "It took a while for it to catch on."
BCB Tasting Room
Orizaba 3003,
Fracc. Neidhart, 22020 Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.656.9405, bajacraftbeers.com
2. Mamut
A half block south of Revolución on Calle 3, Mamut's brewery/tasting room occupies a prime second-floor spot. On a warm day, the wide balcony is the perfect spot for on-point Belgian IPA.
Back on Revolución, turn right, then right into the alley between Caliente casino and a parking structure. On the garage's fifth floor, Norte offers award-winning beers and panoramic views from the city to Otay Mountain.
"Tijuana is craft beer heaven," brewer Alcázar says.
Mamut Brewery Co.
Calle Tercera, 8161, Second floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.685.0137, mamutcerveza.com
3. Plaza Fiesta The twisting pedestrian corridors here are lined with dozens of tasting rooms, including Donkey Punch, Madueño, Lúdica, Vibra and Insurgente. I stopped at Border Psycho for a potent imperial pale ale, then Beer Balcony for 5 y 10's creamy Cappuccino Stout.
While new to me, the beers tasted familiar.
"Whatever catches on in San Diego," says Rudy Lopez Jr., a 5 y 10 brewer and Beer Balcony partner, "the consumers and brewers in Tijuana follow closely."
Plaza Fiesta
Paseo de los Héroes 9415
Zona Urbana Río, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.200.2960, facebook.com/plazafiestatijuana
(7.3 percent alcohol)
By making a hop-heavy American-style IPA, Insurgente announced its big-league ambitions. By making this complex, fruity, refreshing IPA, the upstart became a binational legend.
Cervecería Insurgente
Juan Cordero 10021
Zona Urbana Río, 22010, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.634.1242, cervezainsurgente.com
Nox Arcana
(9 percent alcohol)
A silky imperial stout from Fauna, a Mexicali brewery with a popular Tijuana tasting room. Roasted coffee and bittersweet chocolate is submerged in bourbon and vanilla.
Cerveza Fauna Tasting Room
Paseo de los Héroes 9415, Ste. 3
Zona Urbana Río, 22010, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.163.7467
Sex on the Peach
(6.1 percent alcohol)
Mamut's wild ale brewed with peaches is funky, tart and clean. Savor - the fruit flavors become brighter, fresher after a few sips.
Mamut Brewery Co.
Calle Tercera, 8161, Second floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.685.0137, mamutcerveza.com
Coming to a head: Explore Tijuana's brave new beer world in three easy stops
Germán Alcázar's first impression of Norte, a brewery wedged onto the fifth floor of a downtown Tijuana parking lot:
"What the hell? This won't work."
Somehow it does. Eighteen months later, Norte (and its brewer, Alcázar) are key players in one of North America's best beer cities.
Unfamiliar with this vibrant scene? Take a three-stop tour:
1. BCB Tasting Room
Industrial-chic BCB pours 300 beers, including 42 on tap. Order food from the kitchen - the ribeye sandwich, $11.75, is scrumptious - then a brew from Border Psycho, Ramuri or other Baja stars (pints are $2.50 to $4).
For almost five years, BCB has been introducing customers to full-flavored ales and lagers.
"People weren't fully sold on the craft beer thing," says co-owner Felipe Vera. "It took a while for it to catch on."
BCB Tasting Room
Orizaba 3003,
Fracc. Neidhart, 22020 Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.656.9405, bajacraftbeers.com
2. Mamut
A half block south of Revolución on Calle 3, Mamut's brewery/tasting room occupies a prime second-floor spot. On a warm day, the wide balcony is the perfect spot for on-point Belgian IPA.
Back on Revolución, turn right, then right into the alley between Caliente casino and a parking structure. On the garage's fifth floor, Norte offers award-winning beers and panoramic views from the city to Otay Mountain.
"Tijuana is craft beer heaven," brewer Alcázar says.
Mamut Brewery Co.
Calle Tercera, 8161, Second floor
Zona Centro, 22000, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.685.0137, mamutcerveza.com
3. Plaza Fiesta The twisting pedestrian corridors here are lined with dozens of tasting rooms, including Donkey Punch, Madueño, Lúdica, Vibra and Insurgente. I stopped at Border Psycho for a potent imperial pale ale, then Beer Balcony for 5 y 10's creamy Cappuccino Stout.
While new to me, the beers tasted familiar.
"Whatever catches on in San Diego," says Rudy Lopez Jr., a 5 y 10 brewer and Beer Balcony partner, "the consumers and brewers in Tijuana follow closely."
Plaza Fiesta
Paseo de los Héroes 9415
Zona Urbana Río, Tijuana, B.C.
+52.664.200.2960, facebook.com/plazafiestatijuana
This article was originally published on Apr 28, 2017 in www.pacificsandiego.com - To read the article click here
Amar es compartir
¿Te gustó? ¡Compártelo con el mundo!
