Ola Uruguay Real Estate and Investments

Here are the results of a most important piece of research that I have been conducting for some time now. It was extensive and sometimes intense, but all in the name of hard journalism, and to bring this report to you.

Beer in Uruguay is not as popular as, say, wine or whiskey, however, there is a nice selection to be had for a beer-lover, such as myself. The two most common and heavily promoted lagers are Pilsen and Patricia. A third popular lager is Zillertal, in a distinctive green bottle. And finally there is Nortena. These are all very different beers, with distinctive flavors and varying levels of quality.

In my opinion, Pilsen is the poorest of the three most popular lagers. Their television advertising is definitely aimed at the young, party-oriented crowd who seem more interested in quantity than quality. I find it unrefined, like it was brewed in a hurry. And, at only 5.2% alcohol, it packs the least punch. Why bother with such a pedestrian beer?

Patricia is a much better beer. They have a brewery right beside the famous Salus water and fruit beverage company in Minas. Maybe it benefits from using that famous Salus water, but it is definitely a beer with a crisp, clean taste. I’ve discovered that many visitors to Uruguay find this beer to be worthy of comment. BackPacker website, for instance, gives it five stars.

The other important lager is Zillertal. This beer is quite different with a distinctly European hop taste. The green bottle has led many to compare it to Heineken. I would agree it reminds me of the famous Dutch beer as well as Danish Carlsberg or German Lowenbrau. The bottle label proclaims it to be cerveza de calidad superior. I must agree as it my beer of choice. It has 5.5% alcohol content.

Nortena is, I believe, the newest. I have not found it for sale at any restaurant or bar that I’ve visited in Uruguay. It only seems to be sold in selected supermarkets. It is never advertised on television. I haven’t had a chance to taste it yet, so I will reserve judgment for now.

A new and most pleasant development in beer brewing in Uruguay is additional products by the two major producers, Pilsen and Patricia. There seems to have been a demand for something besides lager and the companies have responded. Pilsen has added Ambar, Malta, and Stout to its listings. I think the Ambar is not bad; quite a pleasant ale really. I find the Malta virtually undrinkable, but I am not a fan of malt liquors in general. The Stout is not “stout” enough, and like the Pilsen lager, seems to have been made in a hurry.

Patricia has added Red Lager, Dunkel, and Porter to their offerings. The Red Lager is a similar style but superior to the Pilsen Ambar. The Dunkel is a very tasty dark beer, fashioned, as the name would suggest, after the dark beers of Germany. I like both these beers a lot and they have supplanted the regular Patricia lager in my beer purchases. The Porter is heavy; but, that is what a porter should be. These new beers are, so far, only available in a selection of restaurants, but I certainly expect this to soon change.

What has been completely missing, for a long time, in Uruguay was craft beers. However, a group of Uruguayan businessmen have created Cerveceria Artesanal del Uruguay, a microbrewery in Montevideo. Their line of beers is called Mastra, and it has three varieties: dorada, which their website describes as “golden extra special”, roja, “strong Scotch ale”, and negra, “American stout”. The dorado has 5.7% alcohol content, while the other two have a hefty 6.2%. The mission of the brewery is “to offer beer to fit the palate of people who value finely crafted products of supreme quality”. Their brewing process, described in loving detail on their website, takes a full forty-three days because “forty three days are enough”. They also offer advice on the correct temperature at which each of their beers should be drank. The website (www.mastra.com.uy) is definitely worth a visit; however, more importantly, one should sample these fine beers.

How much does beer cost in Uruguay? A recent survey of prices in Tienda Inglesa and Disco, both large supermarkets, produced prices for a 960 ml bottle of lager, the size most commonly consumed in Uruguay. A bottle of Pilsen will cost you 41 pesos (at approximately 20 pesos to the dollar), Patricia is 45 pesos, and Zillertal is 49 pesos. The new products from Pilsen and Patricia are all 48 or 49 pesos per bottle, except the Malta at 38 pesos. Mastra, which only sells its beers in the small 355 ml bottles, are each 45 pesos. Sadly, some consumers will miss tasting truly great beers because a small bottle of Mastra costs the same as a large bottle from the other breweries.

This report would not be complete without mentioning that a large number of imported beers are also available in Uruguay, ranging from great beers from Germany and Belgium, to Budweiser and Miller Draft from the U.S. Almost all imports are higher priced than local beers.

Enough with this reporting! It’s a sunny, warm, late spring afternoon at my Uruguayan home. Just perfect for una cerveza de Uruguay.