After a whimsical evening drinking some of the finest cocktails Antwerp has to offer, my wife and I were feeling peckish. Thankfully there was a rustic burrito hovel to satiate our hunger just around the corner; Pick & Mex.
Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a beer with a unique label. It turns out, it was a beer from Peru made from quinoa. Despite having a healthy amount of libations earlier, I felt obligated to drink this peculiar ale. May I introduce to you the beer of the moment. CUSQUEÑA, a 6.5% blond beer.
The first thing that struck me about this Lima beer was the bitterness. The bitterness is akin to a long awaited departure; it's bitter sweet. The incorporation of orange and peach notes cut the bitterness and add a freshness to the flavour profile.
The mouthfeel was unremarkable. While this normally would be an indictment against the swill, in this instance it was okay. There were so many new sensations present that a remarkable mouthfeel might have only served as a distraction rather than a unifying quality.
The blend of corn, barley and quinoa created a lighter, sweet, malty flavour. Personally, I welcomed the complexity of the quinoa malt, but I can see how others may find this characteristic off-putting.
Cusquena is an excellent beer for pairing with red meet or a carb heavy meal, but it is not what one would consider an easy drinking beer by any stretch of the imagination. The selection of grains used in this brew gives the beer it's unique character and if you are able to find cusquena I highly recommend trying it.
Rating: 3/5 a complex yet balanced effort.
