Peruvian Cusquena Lager
September 23, 2008
We Brits are probably blessed with the largest selection of beers on any supermarket shelf than anywhere else. My local supermarket regularly stocks beers from around the UK, Europe and farther afield. However we have to be cautious of the dreaded ‘brewed under licence’ clause, where classic German and Japanese lagers are brewed in the UK to a recipe that approximates the original.
So, when I saw ‘Cusquena’ lager on the shelf, and the magic word ‘Imported’ on the l
abel, I simply had to try it!
Cusquena Lager is brewed in Peru, brewed since 1912 in Cusco, just 40km from World Heritage site at Machu Picchu at an altitude of 12,000 feet altitude. The water used in the brew is glacial water from the high Andes. The beer is brewed to the Reinheitsgebot, as you might expect from a brewery founded (as so many others) by expat Germans.
Cusquena comes in a generous 640ml bottle, which is slightly over a British pint, the bottle is embossed with stone designs to represent Cusco and Machu Pcchu, and is brewed to a respectable 4.6% ABV, which seems to be the entry point for premium lagers these days.
So what’s the beer actually like?
Well the first thing you notice as you pour is the rich golden colour, it really is the colour of summer
sunshine. The head is full and creamy and leaves a reasonable trace as the beer goes down. There isn’t any noticeable aroma, no tart Saaz hops here, just a mellow warmth. And I guess ‘mellow’ is a good way to describe the taste, it feels good in the mouth, not too biting (as so many lagers are), slightly sweet and gently refreshing.
Imagine a summer picnic, one of those endless summers just before you left high school… THAT’s what Cusco conjures up. And that’s fine by me! The UK importers website has interesting background on the brew, and some fascinating looking recipes – I quite fancy the Cebiche Caliente de Camerones.
Oh, and for information, the glass I used for tasting is one of the new ‘Artois’ brewery ‘chalice’ glasses, allegedly designed to help keep the beer cooler for longer.
Overall rating 3 1/2 stars I think.
Rating: 
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Posted in 3 Star Reviews, Lager, Not American Or European Beer, Views from a Brit
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April 27th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
A lovely, fresh, mild lager, which as a woman, I found delicious. Has an almost creamy texture yet a fruity taste. It’s light and lies quite nicely on the stomach.
April 28th, 2009 at 8:26 am
Lisa, thanks for sharing that with us! Bob seemed to like it as well, I’ve not yet had it.
Scott_TheBrewClub’s last blog post..Want to Learn Beer? Start Home Brewing
June 30th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
I just returned from Cusco and found Cusquena to be just about perfect often I passed up the free “Pisco Sours” that all the hotels provided upon check-in for a Cusquena.
January 7th, 2012 at 1:32 pm
I’m from Canada and I tried Cusquena for the first time in 2005 in Lima, Peru. I have returned several times and have always enjoyed this beer. In fact, it quickly became my favourite beer. Not because it wasn’t available in Canada but because it was the cleanest finishing beer I’ve ever had. It was so very crisp in flavour. It was actually similar to an extremely light dry champagne (if such a thing existed). I have been there several times since and have always enjoyed this flavour. I went again in late 2011 (my previous visit was in 2009) and was very disappointed to find that the flavour had completely changed. To me it now tastes very generic. I found a bitterness to it which hadn’t been there before. I suspect that a formulation had changed – perhaps more hops have been added since this is what I tasted (I’ve done many home brews of my own in past years so I understand the taste profiles). In speaking to locals, they suspect that it was as a result of more Cusquena being exported. In the past it was brewed with mountain water for predominantly local consumption with small exports to other Latin American countries. In the mid 2000′s this Quesquena has become a subsidiary of SABMiller based out of London (2nd biggest brewery in the world I think) and I found that it is being brewed to some German standard. Anyway, to me the beer now tastes very similar to all the other beers out there. It has a bite to it that is generically European to me. My brother-in-law also was a fan of this beer. I mourn the true flavour that used to be Cusquena – before it was mass produced for a generic export market.
My 2 cents worth.
January 7th, 2012 at 7:58 pm
Tony – Thanks for the comment. The German ‘standard’ isn’t actually a bad thing if its referring to the German Beer Purity Law (Reinheitsgebot) which only allowed for specific ingredients to be used in beer (barley, water and hops) Obviously they left out yeast, but I guess they didn’t know about it in 1500′s!
Anyway, many brewers claim that standard for marketing purposes, but it does indicate that things like rice or corn aren’t in the beer.
A change in water can certainly make a big difference as well.
If true, I’m sorry to hear that your favorite brew is not what it once was. Perhaps with enough outcry, the powers that be would return it to the original recipe. (But I doubt it)
January 8th, 2012 at 7:46 am
Sad news Tony, but not unusual.
I’d be surprised if SAB MIller enforced the Reinheitsgebot on Cusquena, it’s more likely that the beer has always been brewed to that standard, particularly as the brewery was founded by German ex-pats. SAB Miller may have they’ve decided to promote it, perhaps for the German export market?
It’s also not uncommon for brews to be modified to better cater to international tastes, not something I would agree with, it simply results in a bland selection overall.
The Cusquena marketing here in the UK still claims to use Andes spring water, but of course a cynic would question whether it uses the spring water exclusively, or just a percentage. Brewing does use a LOT of water!
January 23rd, 2012 at 3:18 pm
Imported available at Asda. 4 330cl bottles @£3. yes, imported 5%er 3 quid! Have stocked my fridge with this excellent brew. And not just because of the price.