Beer In Brazil: My Introduction To The World Of Cerveja

Beer in Brazil is not the beer I have come to know and love in the United States.

I have often heard comments made regarding the lack of a beer drinking culture and the brewing of good beers in the US (said comments are false), but next to Brazilian beer, the been in the United States would have to be regarded as something like Supreme Emperor of the Universe.

Brazil’s cerveja selection is very slim – I have only counted about a dozen total types of beer from maybe four total companies (all likely owned by InBev, Disney, or The Man). Stella and Heineken comprise the glamorous “foreign” selection and the local cheap beers are predominantly: Skol, Brahma, Antartica, and Itaipaiva (all equally watered-down and tasteless).

Regardless of type, beer is sold individually (as in you pay for each can/bottle), and although markets may carry beers packaged together, they are not their own item and are still calculated individually (you are still buying six/twelve beers once each, not one six/twelve pack once, get it?). If you’re looking for a 30-rack or even a 24-rack, you are out of luck.

Oh? And you want your beer to be cold when you buy it? Yeah, that is going to cost you double what the beer regularly costs off the shelf. You’re welcome.