Aguila

THE weather's warming and so too is it time to switch from those heavier cooler month beers to the thirst-quenching ales on the market.

There seems to be a big push towards cerveza-style beers, given the success of Corona.

Now I'm not a huge fan of the world's most famous Mexican beer but I am a fan of cerveza and there are plenty to choose from.

The latest vying for our hard-earned beer dollars is Aguila from Columbia. It has your typical Mex-type beer appearance, light golden colour, clear with a tight white head and a mild hop nose.

Aguila is smooth and slightly creamy across the palate with very subtle flavours and a very mild bitterness in the aftertaste - you might even detect a hint of sweetness in the brew.

At 4 per cent, it is classed as a full-strength beer and doesn't sit heavily in the gut and being an easy beer to drink, it has good sessionability.

There's no denying that on a hot day, you could smash quite of few of these down and if you don't want a beer with a dominant taste or aren't a seasoned drinker, this will be quite an appealing drop.

However, it was a beer which, despite its appeal, was "a bit thin" in terms of robust flavours and doesn't quite have the bite that some other cervezas have.

That said, I think it is well suited to a variety of summer dishes, seafood, salads or maybe even some spicy chicken.

If you are looking for an alternative to Corona or just want to explore this part of the beer market, Aguila is worth trying and you can make the comparisons for yourself, amigo!

MY TIP

As with all beer in this bracket, serve nice and cold - I suggest a tall glass to add to the appeal (and leave the fruit out of it please). It is available at selected outlets on the Coast but not in bottlos in six-packs (yet). Expect to pay around $8 a 330ml stubbie, putting it in the upper end of the premium beer market. You might have to lobby Carlton United Breweries, who import it, to see if they can release it to retail chains to bring the price down.