Cerveza Negra (according to Quito)

Name: Cerveza Negra

Served at: Turtle's Head Pub, Quito, Ecuador

Brewer: House brew

Type: (Style / mode of delivery) English Stout; draft served in pint glass

ABV: 5%

Label (5): n/a -- not marketed in bottles -- 3 (based on aesthetics of menu and bar)

Look-Cs (color, clarity, carbonation, cap, and constancy) (20): 14

Snout (15): 12

Texture (20): 12

Flavor (30): 17

X-Factor (10): 8

Total: 66

If this beer were a turtle, it would be Lonesome George-- a little too aloof for everyone's good.

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My ongoing quest for new dark beers in South America has forced me to swallow just as much pride as bad lager, and push anything resembling Tom Friedman-esque thoughts deep into the Jersey Shore of my brain, also known as my misguided subconscious ("I am drinking an English-style brew in a Scottish-style bar in Quito served to me by a young Russian, sitting on a stool made in China while listening to a hopelessly sincere Sri Lankan sing avant-garde electro-pop, and eavesdropping on an Australian's opinions on Uganda. Ouch, the stool just broke due to my uniquely American obesity and weighty observations on globalization. Yay NAFTA!").

I had heard from a friend that deep in Gringolandia (La Mariscal) near the Marriott hotel, there was a "British" (Scottish) bar (now Ecuadorean-owned) by the name of "The Turtle's Head" which had fine craft beers, futbol on the TVs, a fireplace to warm up from Quito's rains, and a solid expat crowd to relax with. I figured this would be the ideal spot to watch the Tea Party stick some old wrinkly sticky ideas in the drooling mouths of the sleeping American public during the November 2010 midterm elections. While the election turned out pretty much as I expected, the existence of a cerveza negra or stout, on the menu was a welcome surprise. 

Cerveza Negra at the Turtle's Head

The snout on this stout may have been its biggest wonder-- it was delightfully roasty with notes resembling popcorn. The carbonation was lacking a smidge, and the cap quickly dissipated into a ring clinging to the edges of the glass. The beer had staying power though, like a 9-minute long James Brown song, and continued to please and enlighten throughout the heartbreak that was the midterms. 

It was a dark amber, and was easily translucent through a bit of candlelight, or held next to the fireplace. The texture was average, and there was not much to be gleamed from the beer warming up. It was definitely a stout: bitter and dry. There was nothing wildly different or new about this stout compared to others I've tried in South America. It seemed very basic. Technically sound but stylistically lacking. It fit the profile well, but did not seem to be trying to do much more than fulfill my craving for a dark beer. 

Finding a craft dark beer in Quito was certainly unexpected, but much like one of Lonesome George's suitors, I was left wanting a bit more.