The view from overseas
When many individuals consider Spain, they’ve romanticised notions of consuming wine or sangría on a terraza within the solar someplace.
Beer consuming nations, the stereotype goes, are the colder nations in Northern Europe. And there’s some reality to that – a number of the largest drinkers in Europe are the Czechs, Germans, Britons, and Irish.
Do the Spanish like their wine? After all. Actually, the common Spaniard drank 23.9 litres of wine in 2020, and Spain can be an enormous producer of wine, boasting 969,000 hectares of vineyards – greater than in each France and Italy and round 13 p.c of all vineyards all over the world.
However should you’ve lived or spent any time in Spain, you’ll know that Spaniards additionally love beer and that it’s really way more widespread to see somebody consuming a caña (a small glass of beer) in a bar than it’s a glass of tinto.
Spanish beer tradition
For as a lot as they love beer nevertheless, Spanish beer tradition is a bit more primary than in different nations.
As a rule, a Spanish particular person will ask for a caña with out specifying what kind of beer they need or what model, one thing unthinkable in Northern Europe.
That’s as a result of for a lot of Spaniards, beer is beer. And so they find it irresistible – consuming between 40-50 litres of beer per head per yr – however the Spanish beer market is generally dominated by three main brewers: Heineken España, who produce Cruzcampo, San Miguel-Mahou, and Damm, who make Estrella Damm.
The preferred beers throughout Spain’s areas in 2021, with Estrella Galicia coming prime of the rostrum. Map: datacentric.es
Generally, bars will solely have one or two beers on faucet (generally only one primary faucet and one other of the identical model however alcohol-free, one thing well-liked in Spain) from the principle business brewers and these are virtually at all times lighter lagers.
Regional variations
Beers additionally have a tendency be fairly regional in Spain.
When you’re consuming in Seville, for instance, you’ll discover virtually each bar serves Cruzcampo.
In Madrid, there’ll be extra Mahou Cinco Estrellas. In Valencia, it may very well be Turia or Aguila. Up in Galicia, most individuals drink Estrella. However because the map under displays, there are different beers produced throughout the nation, from Dorada and Tropical within the Canary Islands to Ambar in Zaragoza.
Spain’s primary beers and the areas the place they’re brewed. Map: El Orden Mundial (CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 ES)
As we talked about beforehand, Spaniards typically don’t drink pints just like the Northern Europeans however reasonably smaller measures often known as cañas, which in some components of Spain are referred to as zurito, corto and even penalti. They’ll fluctuate in measurement relying on the area however normally they’re simply 20cl.
In order for you an enormous beer, you may order a jarra (jug), which could be even larger than a pint. In Madrid, should you order a doble (double) you’ll get a beer that’s round 40cl. Within the Basque Nation, they name these larger beers cañon.
Most bars typically have some type of 33cl bottled beer as effectively, typically referred to as un tercio, so you may at all times ask what cervezas de botella they’ve.
READ ALSO: ¡Salud! The other ways to say cheers in Spanish
The rise of craft beers
The craft beer scene, lengthy established in Northern Europe and america, is beginning to take off in Spain.
Lately, craft or artisan beers (cervezas artesanales) have grown in reputation in Spain and it’s extra widespread than ever to search out bars and eating places that inventory them.
In keeping with the Spanish Company for Meals Security and Diet, in 2008 there have been simply 21 microbreweries in Spain. By the top of 2015, that quantity was 361, an enormous enhance of about 1,600 p.c. In 2022 there are 420.
Catalonia is the area with essentially the most craft breweries, adopted by Andalusia and Castilla y León. It’s additionally doable to go on some guided excursions of them and a few craft beer tasting (Google visita guiada cerveza artesanal and your metropolis or area to search out ones near you).
Information from the Artisan and Impartial Beer Report revealed a 79.58 p.c progress in Spanish craft beer manufacturing from 2015 to 2019, from 12.4 million litres to 22.4 million.
Though craft beer is on the rise in Spain, just one in each 200 beers produced in Spain is presently artesanal.
Regardless of that, impartial brewers are having their beers stocked and served in additional supermarkets and eating places than ever earlier than in Spain, and the nation’s massive brewers are producing a greater variety of stout, IPAs and toasted beers to compete with them.
That signifies that should you don’t need una rubia (a blonde beer), you’ll most likely be capable of order one other type of cerveza in most bars and eating places in Spain.
Six of the very best Spanish craft beers to attempt
La Socarrada
This craft beer from Játiva (Valencia) stays true to Valencian tradition and takes its title from the paella socarrat – the scrumptious crispy layer of rice on the backside of paella. As you would possibly anticipate, this beer has a toasted flavour, and rosemary and Mediterranean honey are added throughout preparation.
Don’t simply take our phrase for it: La Socarrada has been internationally endorsed on the Worldwide Style & High quality Institute in Belgium, the Dublin Craft Beer Cup, and the Commonwealth Cup in america. It’s additionally one of many few Spanish craft beers bought internationally.
Arriaca
Cervezas Arriaca began manufacturing as an artisan brewer in Yunquera de Henares (Guadalajara) in 2014, and success shortly adopted. Arriaca beers have 30 nationwide and worldwide recognitions and awards, firmly establishing itself as one of many main craft beer manufacturers in Spain, producing kinds of blonde, Wheat, Rye, Radler, Session IPA, IPA, Imperial Pink IPA, Imperial Russian Stout and Porter. It’s no marvel the brewers at Arriaca are a number of the founding members of AECAI (Spanish Affiliation of Impartial Artisan Brewers).
Chula Sin
As you’ve most likely seen, alcohol-free beers (often known as cervezas sin alcohol, or just ‘una sin‘) are extremely well-liked in Spain. Given their prevalence in Spain, it’s no shock that the hipster breweries have additionally had a go at producing alcohol-free beers. A very good one is Chula Sin, the primary non-alcoholic craft beer in Spain, made with a mix of the very best malt and hops in Spain and balanced with American Hops for a style so good you wouldn’t understand it’s alcohol-free.
The Madrid brewers even have a scrumptious wheat beer referred to as Cheli and a really robust ale referred to as Ziva 2.0.
Unika Beers
This Catalan-based brewer is one thing for the foodies amongst us. Unika Beers are a bit of completely different, even by craft beer requirements, and purpose to provide beers with a gastronomic twist that accompany meals. Their beers are featured on the menus of over 200 eating places and cocktail bars, Unika beers are made out of 100% pure components – they even brew a gluten-free beer appropriate for celiacs.
Basqueland Brewing
Basqueland Brewing produce award-winning beer on the outskirts of San Sebastián by the Bay of Biscay. Born in 2015, the Basque brewers are a number of the most efficient in Spain, creating round 80 new beers a yr, and received the Brewer of the 12 months award in 2021 on the Barcelona Beer Problem.
Cerveza La Virgen
This Madrid-based brewer started in 2012 and by 2019 had established itself as a pacesetter within the Spanish craft beer scene. La Virgen was named the Finest Lager in Spain by the World Beer Awards for 4 consecutive years in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.