Comparing Colombian Beers: The Good, the Bad, and the Suave

In this article:

• Colombian beers don’t really have much of an international reputation since they get overshadowed by the nation’s other famous exports.
• Even though its beers aren’t particularly famous, there are still some great, refreshing cervezas coming out of the nation’s brewing companies.
• There are also some pretty undrinkable ones as well, though.
• This comparison of Colombian beers should help you pick which 6-pack you’re taking to the beach on your next visit to the country.

Colombia is known for quite a few things. It was the seat of Pablo Escobar’s drug trafficking empire in the 1980s. It’s a major exporter of coffee all around the world. It gave the world the cheese-stuffed street food known as the arepa. And, of course, it’s also the birthplace of world-famous pop singer Shakira.

One thing that Colombia is not known for, however, is its beer. The national drink is aguardiente, a sugar cane-derived liqueur infused with anise that’s consumed at all sorts of festivities. So Colombian beers get pushed to the wayside. 

I’m not going to tell you that Colombia has the best beer in the world. No matter what variety you choose, you’re pretty much going to get a Latin-style lager along the lines of Corona, Tecate, or Modelo.

While craft breweries like Bogota Brewing Company and Mission Cerveza are producing some wonderful brews, you won’t find them on offer everywhere. For the most part, you’ll be limited to more basic options while in Colombia. 

As a man of the people, I’ve attempted to taste all the different Colombian beers that are most commonly sold in the country in hopes of discovering which are the best and which are absolutely terrible.

Comparing 6 Popular Colombian Beers

After hours of painstaking research (re: drinking), I’ve come to some conclusions about Colombian beers that I wish to share with you.

Aguila: The Budweiser of Colombia

Aguila is, undoubtedly, the national beer of Colombia. It’s sort of like what Budweiser is to the United States. The cans and bottles sport red, blue, and yellow, the colors of the Colombian flag. Look around any street party and you’ll see that most Colombians will be drinking Aguila.

Is that because it’s the best beer that the country has to offer? Probably not. 

The flavor of Aguila is pretty much nonexistent. Thus, it’s the go-to beer for sitting at a table by the beach and blasting salsa music at max volume for ten hours straight.

It’s easy to drink and that’s probably why Colombians like it so much. It’s what we Westerners might refer to as “piss water,” and I don’t mean that in a derogatory sense. Every country needs a mediocre beer that you can sip all day long and that’s what Aguila is to Colombia.

Since Aguila is so popular in Colombia, we’ll be using it as a sort of baseline for this experiment.

Club Colombia Dorada: The Colt 45 of Colombia

Club Colombia Dorada was the first beer I ever tried in Colombia. In fact, I had a relatively warm one on the plane ride from Panama City to Cartagena. Trying to be optimistic, I turned to my girlfriend and said, “This is pretty good.”

I lied. I’m sorry. Club Colombia does have more flavor than Aguila, but it’s a malty flavor reminiscent of a 40-ounce malt liquor you might pick up from a corner store. I’ve met many travelers that prefer Club Colombia Dorada to Aguila, but those people are wrong. 

Club Colombia also produces Roja and Negra variants, but they’re pretty hard to come by in your typical Colombian town. I have tried Club Colombia Negra, though, and I quite enjoyed it. I’m also a lover of dark beer, so keep that in mind. 

Andina: Colombia in a Beer

Another really popular beer in Colombia is Andina. However, you tend to see Andina Light more than you do the regular version. It seemed unfair to compare a light beer with a bunch of regular beers, so I chose to sample a regular Andina.

First of all, the packaging is great. It’s got a multicolored bird on the front. The motto is also “Colombia en una cerveza,” which translates to “Colombia in a beer.” I like that.

Andina is your basic cerveza. It’s very similar to Aguila but with a little bit more flavor. It’s easy to drink and has a subtle sweetness to it that makes it the perfect beer to drink on the beach. However, do not let this beer get warm. I made that fatal mistake and it tasted terrible.

Nativa: The Beer to Give to Your Enemies

Nativa is dirty dishwater in a bottle. Do not drink it. Yes, it is probably the cheapest of the Colombian beers that you’ll find. It says that it sells for 1,200 Colombian pesos right on the bottle, around $0.30 USD. But there’s a good reason for that.

Someone decided that making a Bavarian-style beer for Colombia was a good idea. It was not a good idea. There is no flavor whatsoever in this beer save a faint trace of wheat which makes it even more disgusting. 

On the bright side, Nativa is also made with local ingredients, meaning that they infused it with locally grown yuca. Just kidding. It’s not a bright side. I’m all for experimenting with your brewing recipe, but yuca has no place in beer. Don’t drink Nativa. 

Costeña: A Breath of Fresh Air

Out of all of the basic Colombian beers that I tried, Costeña was the best, hands down. The taste is crisp and light with a hint of hops. It’s great to drink on any occasion: on the beach, with dinner, while playing a drinking game, or while walking down the streets of Cartagena.

It’s most often sold in little “Costeñita” bottles that only contain 175 milliliters (most beer bottles contain 350). And, while this may sound like a bad idea, in the sweltering heat of Colombia, it’s pretty nice to have a small bottle of beer that won’t get warm before you finish it. 

Costeña is probably the second-most popular of Colombian beers. On any given Sunday, you can see tables littered with empty Costeñita bottles. Colombian dudes throw these back like nobody’s business.

If I had to compare Costeña to a more popular brand, I’d say it’s sort of like a lighter Heineken. It’s great. Costeña takes the cake in the battle of Colombian beers.

Poker: The Okayest of Colombian Beers

Poker struck me as a strange name for a beer in South America, so I avoided trying it for a while. But when I set out to write this article, I finally took the plunge. With determination in my heart and a wad of Colombian pesos in my pocket, I went to buy myself a can of Poker.

It was just so-so. Honestly, if I had to do a blind taste test and try to distinguish between Poker and Aguila, I probably couldn’t do it. Just like Aguila, Poker is your basic drinking beer, fine for sitting on the beach and throwing back an entire six-pack.

It’s not something that I would buy back in the United States. But, for lounging on the Caribbean coast all day and drinking, Poker will do just fine. 

Maybe Poker was invented for people who just want to drink and play cards all day, in which case they probably don’t really care what they’re drinking anyway. It’s nothing to write home about, but it’s alright.