I first tried this beer 10 years ago, when we went to Guatemala on a mission trip. We had the first evening to ourselves, so two of us, another dude named John, and I, got a tuktuk into town—everybody else was too tired to hit the bricks. We had no real idea what we were doing or where we were going—which is probably why we ended up asking for directions in a brothel—but eventually we made it to Calle Santander and found a place where we could get a beer (and listen to a gringo called Matteo, who played chords on a guitar badly, apparently in exchange for some hot soup). The beer was Gallo, which appears to have been rechristened Famosa at some point on its voyage to the States; but it will always be Gallo to me. It can now be had here, but at $20 for a 12-pack, it’s too pricey—except to have an experimental go at it or to relive memories of looking at three volcanoes across one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, which I have had the good fortune to do—twice.
It’s billed as a lager, and that’s what it tastes like; but it’s deeper and richer than most American lagers, though “dark golden hue” is stretching it. I don’t recall what the ones called Gallo tasted like when I was in Guatemala, but the ones I’m tasting out of cans here at home make me wonder if something has changed in the translation. It ain’t worth $20, but it’s hella better than most of the macrobrewed shit they orchestrate out of the low countries.
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