Gallo: A beer worth traveling to get
The national beer of Guatemala is Gallo, a straightforward, somewhat dry, inexpensive brew that is made in batches small enough that the beer if not available for export. People who drink beer are not surprised that when they sit down in a bar in Guatemala, the server doesn’t ask if they’d like to order a beer or cerveza, but instead just asks “Would you like a Gallo?” because everyone assumes that if you want a beer, you want a Gallo beer.
The beer comes in brown glass bottles or in aluminum cans, with its logo of a black rooster – the Spanish word for rooster being “gallo” – and many people use up their entire quota of exportable duty free alcohol when leaving Guatemala, not on rum or tequila, but on cumbersome bottles of Gallo. You can even enjoy this beer at room temperature, the way Guinness is meant to be served, although it is best served ice cold in a chilled beer glass. Gallo is also available on tap in some bars, and is worth seeking out, because if the beverage is good from a bottle, it is phenomenal from a fresh tap.
So if you are looking for a good excuse to take a vacation, and are one of the many who enjoys a good beer in a tropical climate, then make your way to the land of perpetual sunshine, springtime, and great national beer, and find out why so many people go to Guatemala and then never return home again.