Sol Chelada
Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma

Presentation: 24 ounce can poured into a pint glass.

Look: pinkish red color. Cloudy appearance. Moderate head that evaporates rather quickly.

Smell: sweet tomato aroma primarily. Faint grassy aroma. The smell is not strong, but it is pleasant.

Taste: rich tomato flavor initially, followed by various spice flavors. Faint taste of citrus.

Feel: rich creamy mouthfeel. Does not feel watery at all. Moderate carbonation.

Overall: this is a really good canned Chelada. I was not expecting much but was pleasantly surprised. I highly recommend trying this.

In a pint glass the beer is a dark red color with a pink head of foam. No real lace, just some sludge on the glass.
Aroma of tomato juice, pepper, faint lime.
Not a bad taste. Tomato juice, pepper, lime.
Thick-bodied.
It does quench one's thirst.

 

It is a Chelada with tomato and clam juice added. Sol also has a Chelada which it labels Limón Y Sal, which is a true Chelada, so they further confuse the market with another mislabel. Confusing. At first I was repulsed by this beer. But, it makes a good beverage with food. Strangely they use a different pepper from the Limón Y Sal (perhaps black pepper?), but also overuse it. The clam flavor is very minor and the tomato almost overwhelms. It is interesting and diverting from the usual beers, but I wouldn't drink it by itself again.

 

 

 

I love a good Michelada, and for a canned one, this is pretty good. It’s got a nice mix of savory and spicy elements.

Hazy reddish tone, ample foam with a gelatinous texture from the tomato juice, sturdy head that lasts for the whole glass. Chunks of tomato pulp render the glass opaque.

Creamy smooth texture, savory with a little bite of lime and chile. Taste is a nice mix of tomato, lime, salt, maybe oregano or similar savory herb.

Overall it’s tasty with a satisfying full body and nice mix of flavors.

 

A good basic Chelada with solid taste and smooth drink ability, great on a hot day!

 

 

 

CAN: Blue with a red, white, and gold label. 24 fl oz.

3.5% ABV. "A flavorful and refreshing mix of Sol beer with tomato, natural line and spice flavors." Per 12 fl oz: 158 kcal, 20.3g carbohydrate, 0g fat, 1.8g protein."

Currently #153 in the Top Fruit and Field Beers list and #13 in the Top Rated Mexico Beers list.

Served as cold as possible into a shaker pint (I consider that fine since even pouring this into a glass at all feels fancy when considering how its target demo drinks it).

APPEARANCE: Thick, red, pulpy. No head at all. Difficult to tell if it's actually carbonated or not just looking at it.

AROMA: Canned tomato puree, artificial lime/lime extract, salt, mild vinegar-based hot sauce, dollar store Bloody Mary mix.

I can't say I detect any malts, hops, or yeast.

TASTE & TEXTURE: Matches the aroma but boasts surprising depth of flavour in terms of the pureed tomato/tomato juice flavour, which works well in tandem with its lime-bolstered acidity. Filling both because it's a thicker pulpier beverage and because it has a salty MSG-like sort of umami flavour to it...not necessarily what I want in my beer (and this is rougher on the waistline than the vast majority of similarily low ABV beers out there) but it's not unpleasant. Not spicy despite the presence of a vinegary hot sauce sort of flavour.

I have to say it's a hell of a lot better than Budweiser Chelada and it doesn't have the nasty clam juice and/or butyric acid/vomit-ridden flavours that beer suffers from.

Not unrefreshing despite how thick and rich it is. I'd call it smooth but it's too chunky and uneven for that descriptor. Wet, though, and quenching. Well carbonated given its weight on the palate. I don't love the texture, but if you're after a beer for the Bloody Mary drinker this is your man.

OVERALL: I don't love it but I have to admit it has its place. I could see myself enjoying this straight from an ice chest on a Mexican construction site or while mowing the lawn on a hot day when hungover, and that's kind of what it's for. I can't see where this would be as good as a michelada made at home using fresher ingredients and a normal budget beer (Pacifico, I'm looking at you), but if you must have a premade michelada this is a step above its more pandering competitors.

Pair with paella, chicken wings, or carne asada nachos.

C / AVERAGE

I made a beer advocate login just to review this sol chelada. This is by far the best of all the canned cheladas. If there was a score on cheladas specifically it would be a 10/10. Thank you for this amazing product. Great flavors of spice salt N tomatoes with a taste that sits on your tounge making you want more each sip.

Sol Chelada has a thin, fizzy pink-white head, an opaque pink appearance, with salt rind residue on the glass. The aroma is of raw, saltwater seafood and spices, and the flavor is of salty tomato, spices, citrus, & clams. The body is medium, and Sol Chelada finishes fairly dry.

RJT