Best Type Of Beer To Use For Refreshing Micheladas

With Cinco de Mayo coming up, there's one thing on everyone's minds: Why were the French trying to take the Mexican city of Puebla in 1862? Wait, sorry — I mean micheladas! Not only is May 5 the biggest celebration of Mexico on the U.S. calendar, but it also coincides with the beginning of consistently warm weather for much of the country. As such, it's a big day for Mexican classics like margs and tacos, as well as micheladas. 

Micheladas are massive south of the border, and they come in many forms. While the exact recipe varies from state to state and even bar to bar in Mexico, micheladas are always beer cocktails. In the United States, a michelada is always a beer cocktail with tomato juice. This keeps beer choice simple. There's a pretty strong consensus on the best brewskie for a tomato or Clamato (clam infused tomato juice) based michelada; light Mexican lagers are the hands-down winners for this summery, tangy drink (and we found the best one in our blind taste test). 

The clarity, crispness, and sweet notes of these beers are enhanced by adjuncts, or additions to the core recipe, such as flaked maize. This flavor profile allows you to taste the spice and the sharpness of a michelada without any single element becoming overwhelming, unless you have a really heavy hand with the Tabasco or salsa inglesa (aka Worcestershire sauce).

When I say light Mexican lagers, I mean beers like Corona, Pacifico, or Modelo Especial. Sol and Carta Blanca are also good options, although I personally find their flavor a little lightweight. Victoria and Bohemia may be harder to find in the U.S., but they're very popular in Mexico. Both are lagers, but their flavor is also a bit richer than Corona and Pacifico. I would describe them as "less perfect" for a Michelada but by no means bad choices. 

The big no-no for your Cinco de Mayo michelada? American Light beers. Even if you're a Bud Light or Michelob Ultra regular, these brews just don't have the body to hold up against tomato juice and spice. If you use them, you'll end up with lightly sparkling gazpacho in a glass.

A good michelada also goes far beyond beer choice. Standard ingredients include good quality tomato juice (or kind-of-nasty Clamato juice), lime, Worcestershire sauce, a simple hot sauce, and a liquid seasoning like Knorr, Maggi, or Bragg's Liquid Aminos. Just like the queen of brunch drinks, the bloody mary, micheladas are very customizable and personal, so I'm not going to give you exact measurements. (Those are for you to work out and pass down to your children when they turn 21.) One pro tip: Try a glass rimmed with Tajin, a popular Mexican seasoning blend featuring dried Mexican chilis.

Once you've designed your perfect michelada, you're ready to meet the drink's many cousins. The michelada is part of a broad category of drinks known as "cervezas preparadas," which are far more complex than a single beer cocktail. Cervezas preparadas range from simple to mind-bendingly elaborate. Some have salty-sweet chamoy dripping down the glass or a toasted sesame seed rim, while others are topped with candy skewers or skewered shrimp. On occasion, they even include a cheeky shot of tequila. 

The language to describe these drinks isn't precise, with Mexicans regularly arguing about whether a michelada should even have tomato juice in it. So, you have to be specific when you order (or offer) them. The basic options include "solo limon y sal" (lime juice and salt) "limon, sal, y salsas" (lime, salt, and any or all the sauces available) "con Clamato" (with Clamato), and "con todo" (with everything). To make things even more interesting, you'll often be asked to choose your beer, too. While clear Mexican lagers always work, I find darker lagers, known as oscuras or negras, also marry very well with salt and lime. This makes them a good choice for cervezas preperadas that don't include tomato juice. 

If you're picking up ingredients for DIY micheladas, why not grab a few Negra Modelos and give them a try with lime juice and salt? Once you've done a bit of experimentation, you can celebrate with your favorite cerveza preperada on May 5. Every Mexican has their own go-to, but there's no real right and wrong — unless you mix up Cinco de Mayo with Mexico's Independence day, of course (that's September 16).