Craft Beer in Tijuana, Mexico – The Beer Box
When most people think of Mexican beer, craft beer isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. Until recently the craft beer selection in Tijuana, Mexico’s sixth largest city, was rather limited. Sure there’s Cerveza Tijuana and if you were lucky you might find some of Mexicali based Cucapa Brewing Co.’s beers in Tijuana, but for the most part Tijuana (as with much of the rest of Mexico) was all about Tecate, Tecate Light (what? It gets lighter?), Dos Equis, Modelo, etc.
That all changed when The Beer Box opened. Located in the Zona Rio not too far from the US-Mexico border (the address is Sánchez Taboada 4499 – but anyone that knows Tijuana knows that doesn’t mean much), I stumbled upon The Beer Box while visiting friends at Christmas. It’s a small store in a crowded strip mall, with a beer selection previously unheard of in Tijuana.
When I walked in the first thing I noticed was a display case with some San Diego craft breweries beer. Beers from Stone Brewing Co. and the Lost Abbey among others. Then there was another display case with a ton of European beers, many available in the US, but there were a few I’ve never seen before. And then were was the selection of Mexican craft beer. There were beers from at least ten different Mexican breweries, with nearly every style of beer you can imagine represented.
I felt like a kid in a candy store. So many beer’s I’d never seen before, breweries I’d never heard of, and at very reasonable prices (if I remember right most beers were between $1-2 each). I grabbed about 18 different beers to take back to a friend’s place and share with everyone, unfortunately I didn’t write down any of the names, but I do remember getting a Mexican stout and a Mexican Irish Red style brew among others.
In addition to the great selection and good prices the guy working was really cool. Since I’d never heard of many of the beers he was very helpful guiding me towards beers I might like. We got to talking and he also mentioned that him and some friends are trying to start a Tijuana homebrew club.
Below are a few more pictures from The Beer Box, as well as a Youtube video I came across (in Spanish).
CervezerÃa Tijuana bottles only a few of their brews, pasteurizing them to do so. The brewery is nearby (two or three kilometers from the Brew Box) and serves everything on draft. La Bufadora, their high-gravity ale, is well worth a visit for those who already like Stone Arrogant Bastard. The brewery also serves a sampler flight. Our blog hopes to run an item on this brewery soon.
Baja’s first craft beer is Mexicali, presumably brewed using the same recipe from the 1920s, but nowadays in Tecate. A few wealthy enthusiasts resurrected the brand maybe fifteen or twenty years ago and then sold it to Coors. It is an excellent lager, dry and hoppy, that survives bottling very well.
Saludos!