What wine goes with Mexican food?

As a native San Diegan, I’ve got a special place in my heart for Mexican food. I remember days of going to the beach and loading up prior to hitting the water with dollar fish tacos from the hole-in-the-wall taco shops (please don’t call them tacqerias (sp?)). Since I’ve moved north and the wine world found me, I’ve been on a quest to find a wine that pairs perfectly with Mexican food. And after too many glasses of wine, I’ve found the answer—there isn’t any.

Drink beer and tequila

(in moderation, please)

There is a reason why tequila is grown in Mexico and Mexican beers are the way they are. They are designed to compliment the local foods. Mexican food (which is completely different than Spanish foods) tend to have some heat and spices to them. Green peppers, red peppers, the habenero, coriander / cilantro. All of these blow out your taste buds. You need something to quench the fire, not further expand it. There is a reason why the experts suggest milk (the thicker and creamier the better) to put out the burning in your mouth.

Happy Cinco de Mayo

For one day, I’m putting down the wine glass and picking up a lime (or an orange with tequila) and raising a cold one. And in order are my 3 favorite beers from Mexico. Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

3. On the bottom of the ladder is Modelo Especial, from it’s namesake Grupo Modelo. It is the number one selling canned beer brand in Mexico. Modelo is your basic Mexican Lager and is just fine if you’re sitting around with friends eating a bushel of crabs.

2. Tecate – It’s a fuller bodied beer than Corona. It also has a more complex flavor and you don’t need to add a lime. Although many consider Tecate a fairly cheap beer, it’s quite refreshing in a long neck bottle offering more complexity than what cheaper Mexican beers usually give you.

1. Most beer drinkers when they think of Mexican beer think Corona with a lime wedge. Because of recent ad campaigns marketing the beer we probably also think of sitting on the beach with a cold pail of Coronas as well (and there is nothing wrong with that, for the record). Corona Light is a lighter version of Corona Extra. It carries many of the great characteristics of the original with fewer calories.
Corona is a fine staple beer if you’re putting down a couple, but there are tasty alternatives for the more discerning beer drinker. However, it happens to be my favorite beer. While I am a wine snob, I’m not the most picky when it comes to beer.

I do follow my same rule though, “Drink what you like” whether it be beer or wine, or tequila.