Beers Of Chile

Yves Weissig -

Here comes the third beer evaluation of my trip, this time I'm going to have a look at the beers of Chile. If you were lazy before and missed the blog entries from Uruguay and Argentina click here and here in order to catch up.

  • Escudo is a lager which is produced by the Compañía de Cervecerías Unidas (CCU) in Santiago de Chile. Versions include "Normal", "Negra" and "Triple-X", I was able to get my hands on the normal version and this one is quite light and colorless for my taste.
  • Cristal is another beer by the CCU from Santiago de Chile. As far as my research goes it originates from Valparaíso and was first mentioned in the year 1850. As for today it's another mainstream beer. It comes also as a "Light" and a "Cero" (Non-Alcoholic) version.
  • Austral or Cerveza Austral, which is the official name, originates from the "Cervecería La Patagonía", founded in 1896 by José Fischer in Punta Arenas. It now runs as "Cervecería Austral" and was incorporated into the CCU universe. It comes in the following variants: "Lager", "Calafate Ale", "Patagona Pale Ale", "Yagán Dark Ale" and "Torres del Paine". I was able to get my hands on the first two of them.
  • Kunstmann is a beer brand by the "Compañía Cervecera Kunstmann S.A." from Valdivia, where it is also produced. It also belongs to the CCU universe, but until now Armin Kunstmann, head of the company, has control over the beer, at least that's what my research yielded. It comes in a variety of flavours, look here for more. There is also a German Wikipedia entry for it. I tested the "Lager" and the "Honig Ale".
  • Becker is a beer produced by Cervecerias Chile in Santiago de Chile, the whole company belongs to ABInbev. It comes as a "Rubia" and "Helles". I tested the "Rubia".
  • Kross is a Cerveza Artesanal from Curacaví. It comes in a variety of classic types: "Golden", "Stout", "Pilsner", "Maibock" as well as special types: "Kross 5", "Kross 5 750", "Lupulus" and "Lupulus 710". I tested the "Lupulus", "Golden" and "Stout".
  • Mestiza is a Cerveza Artesanal from Valparaíso. It comes as a "American Pale Ale", "Deutsches Alt Bier" and "Irish Dry Stout". I tested the "American Pale Ale".
  • Volcanes del Sur is a Cerveza Artesanal from Colbún. It comes as a "Premium Lager", "Dopple Bock", "Bock Chocholate", "Summer Lucuma" and "Strong Lager". I tested the "Premium Lager".
  • Mestra is a Cerveza Artesanal from Malloco. It comes in these different varities: "Blonde Ale", "Amber Ale", "Scotch Ale", "Stout" and "Cerveza Cero". I was lucky enough to snatch a "Blonde Ale" from them.
  • Guayacán is a Cerveza Artesanal from Diaguitas in the Valle de Elqui. The brewery serves the following types: "Pale-Ale", "Golden-Ale", "Stout" and "Porter". Lucky me got a "Pale-Ale" to test.

Here is an overview of the tested beers:
01 Escudo
02 Cristal
03 Austral Lager
04 Austral Calafate Ale
05 Kunstmann Honig Ale
06 Becker Rubia
07 Kross Stout
08 Kross Golden
09 Kross Lupulus
10 Mestiza American Pale Ale
11 Volcanes del Sur Premium Lager
12 Mestra Blonde Ale
13 Guayacán Pale-Ale

And the winner is...

In the category Cerveza Artesanal the trophy goes to Kross Golden, a nice and fresh Lager. Cristal wins in the category Cerveza Popular, a very well produced mainstream beer with a good taste and a nice finish.