Country

Mexico

A lager-brewing country whose amber styles descend directly from Vienna lager, brought by nineteenth-century central European brewers.

Mexican brewing was established largely by German, Austrian and Swiss immigrants in the nineteenth century, and the Vienna lager tradition took root there more durably than it did in Vienna.

Modern Mexican production is dominated by pale lager, much of it very light-bodied and often brewed with a proportion of maize. The amber "Vienna-style" beers remain the clearest surviving link to the original tradition.

Brewing traditions

Vienna and Mexican amber lager

The amber malt-forward lager tradition begun in Vienna in 1841, which survived more strongly in Mexico than in Austria.

Use of gently kilned amber malt for toasty depth without roast, produced with indirect-fired kilning.
Clean lager fermentation and conditioning, letting the malt character sit exposed.
In the Mexican line, frequent use of maize as an adjunct, lightening the body.

1 styles from Mexico

International amber lager4.2–6% ABV
A light, commercially-produced amber lager, most familiar in its Mexican form, with gentle caramel over a crisp body.

Breweries in Mexico

Carried because a reference beer, a tradition or a historical event needs them. Not a directory.

Beer history in Mexico

1860–1900 Vienna lager survives in Mexico
Central European brewers emigrating to Mexico carried the Vienna amber lager tradition with them, and it persisted there after largely disappearing in Austria.