Victoria and Tezon Resposedo Tequila:
Happy Cinco De Mayo people!  As we celebrate Mexican independence from Spain, let’s dive into two true Mexican items: a Mexican Beer and a Tequila.  First, of course is the beer, in particular, a relatively new beer to us stateside and as the good people at Crown Imports put it here in Texas (it was initially released in Chicago, to a “successful” debut there).  In a little research I found a good article about the release here in Texas on the Observer website that gave details of the beer before the release that had everything from hording, price fixing and hide n’ go seek.   Victoria is hailed as Mexico’s oldest beer, tracing itself all the way back to 1865 and is a “Vienna Style Lager” (that’s a new one) that is now brewed by Grupo Modelo, the largest brewer in Mexico.  The beer pours well leaving a medium sized head that disappears quickly in the process of setting up camera shots, pouring tequila and etc.  The nose is on of caramel notes with a undertone of malts and corn. The taste is underwhelming, slightly sweet with just hints of hops but mainly neutral in tone, flavor and carbonation.  I had high hopes for this beer, hoping that it would something to challenge Negro Modelo but alas, it wasn’t.  It wasn’t bad but nothing about it will bring me back to it, at least not on my dime.

Now lets talk tequila.  My personal favorite is one of these that is no longer distributing it here in the states.  Sad I know, and trust me I’m rationing the last third of my bottle.  Tezon is a tequila that I found at the same time of discovering the awesomeness of the tequila bar at Blue Mesa.  Not going to say much because, sadly, it’s no longer available, but know that in my humble opinion, a Resposado tequila, not a blanco or anjeo.  Resposados are aged old white oak bourbon barrels for 8-10 months.  Guess I know why I like this one.  Supposedly you can find this here and there in clearance bins at liquor stores, and if you find any of the three, I’d recommended picking up some.