Beer 249: Cusquena Cerveza Premium

Today is Julia Child's birthday.  I remember watching her show on PBS with my Mom and thinking I want a cooking show.  To this day when I'm baking, I like to premeasure all the ingredients as if a camera crew is going to randomly show up in my kitchen to film my culinary efforts. 

I can remember perfectly the first time I saw her kitchen exhibit at the Smithsonian.  There's a really cool online tour of it here for those of you who aren't using iPads to read this post.  If you're like me and held hostage by the Apple/Adobe war, check it out here.  I'll admit I was fascinated by the 2009 film Julie & Julia.  Meryl Streep was amazing in her portrayal of Julia.  And there was definitely a little influence on my decision to start blogging after I read one of the books that was adapted for that movie -- the memoir of Julie Powell as she tackled all 560 or so recipes in Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  So what if it took nearly four years to kick in...

Happy birthday, Julia!

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Today's beer has nothing to do with Julia Child. It's from Peru. Cerveza Premium. Muy premium. Caliente! Ok, I'm done sharing what little Spanish I remember from high school. The Cusquena smells like a lager, which is good because it is a lager. Lots of malt in the nose. It poured a pale amber color with a quick-to-disappear head. It's hoppier than I imagined it would be but there is a strong malt to it. There are also hints of grain. Honestly it reminds me of a slightly watered down Yuengling lager.

Cheers!

And to Drink... PERU.....!

Beer#19 Cusqueña/ Backus and Johnston, Lima, Peru
The title of this post comes from a scene from the absolutely classic film Better Off Dead, where the dingbat mom runs down the dinner menu for their French exchange student using her best/worst accent, "..Fronch fries and Fronch dressing and Fronch bread...and to drink.. Peru!" 

So let's have some Peru to drink, shall we?  We're heading straight to the Southern Hemisphere for today's beer, amigos.

When I sample the beer for the day, I like to jot down a few notes which I can expand on later.  Simple shorthand to get some of the key points down before I start blogging in earnest or writing about my day or what music I'm listening to.  I then head to the web to learn more about the beer/brewery.  Here are my first notes on Cusqueña:  "Basic, clean flavor, not very complex.  The Miller Genuine Draft of Peru?  Fun 11.2oz bottle."

When I went to the web to learn more, it turns out Cusqueña sort of is the MGD of Peru, as this brewery is owned by SABMiller, the British company that owns/produces... Miller beer.  Hey, more M&A in the beer world!  I guess this is a good thing, as without that global reach, would I really be drinking a beer from Peru?  The beer itself dates back to the turn of the 20th century, when it was originally produced by the Cervecerìa Cusqueña in the town of Cusco.  That brewery was bought by Backus and Johnston years back - their completely non-Peruvian brewery name comes from two German settlers who started a brewery in Peru in 1879.  A rich and interesting history, but I wish the beer had a bit more to offer than 'fun 11.2oz bottle'.

Thing to Think About Today:
Have been spending a lot of time lately on a project for a client in Chicago, and will be spending every waking hour over the next two weeks focused on wrapping it up.  There are a million great things about the Windy City, but the next time you're in town and looking for brunch, be sure to hit Wishbone for an amazing meal.  Two locations, fantastic food, great atmosphere.  Don't get there too early though: they can't start serving Bloody Marys until after 11am on Sunday.  Stupid rules. 

Bonus and totally related thing to think about when in Chicago: Marci believes one of the best Bloody Mary she's ever had came from the outdoor Park Cafe restaurant in Grant Park.  Keep this in mind, as she takes her Bloody Marys seriously.