I sipped an ice-cold Kalik beer after trekking through
the hot, sweltering Caribbean pine and palmetto palm forest on the Bahamian out
island of Abaco. It was in the late 1980’s,
and I was helping the New York Zoological Society save the endangered Bahamian
Parrot in the 20,000-acre parrot preserve that then Bahamian Prime Minister Lyden
Pindling set aside in a historic conservation move.
At the day’s end, our team would sit around the
outside patio bar of the Conch Inn Motel and Marina in Marsh Harbour, and sip
on cold Kalik beers. It was then that I wrote the PENUMBRA DATABASE spy
thriller, with many scenes of the parrot preserve, Marsh Harbour, the Conch
Inn Marina, and places along the Great Abaco Highway, known as the “GAH”.
The Bahamas and Caribbean nations brew their beers
in a unique way, distinctive to each island region. Each brews its own unique
pale lager and an occasional stout.
In the Bahamas, Kalik beer, a golden
lager, is the national beer, controlling over 50% of the beer market in the
country. It was the winner of three consecutive Gold Medals from Monde
Selection, and is also the stronger of most Caribbean lagers, at 7% ABV. It’s
brewed by Commonwealth Brewing Ltd, which also makes Kalik Light and Kalik
Regular, two lagers lighter than the original.
In 2007, beer competition arose in the
Bahamas! Sands Beer based out of Freeport; Grand Bahama entered the market
with its signature Lager "Sands". It also launched beers called High
Rock named after a town in Eastern Grand Bahama, and a dark stout called Strong
Back.
I
have a favorite brewski that I ran into in the Dominican Republic. But first, the
most popular brands include in DR are Presidente, Presidente Black and
Presidente Light, Bohemia Especial, and La Benedicta. Presidente is the
most chugged down of them all.
But
I ran into my favorite Dominican Republic beer when I was down there working on
the Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster series… the Santo Domingo Catalina beer. I
even mention it a few times in the spy thriller MISSION OF VENGEANCE. Here’s a
brief snippet:
Corey took swig from a bottle of Santo Domingo Catalina beer that filled half the refrigerator in the safe house.
General Morrison liked to keep his agents contented. The slight touch of banana
tasted good. “No one would argue with you. They assume the perfect cover,
sailing the Caribbean on a fifty-foot yacht while masquerading as spoiled rich
kids, scuba diving and partying everywhere they go. Who would imagine they move
CBIF’s operational gear, weapons and undercover agents to wherever needed?”
Everyone sat at the table alongside the Russian
defector Bocharov. Cartwright, Chop-Chop, Steve Sweeney and Ashley Murray. They
watched Corey as he went to the refrig and retrieve two Santo Domingo Catalina
beers and place one in front of the double agent. “Here, you’re going to need
this. Sorry I can’t offer you a Moscow Mule, but you’ll like the banana tang to
it.” End of snippet.
If you travel to Jamaica, you’ll find that Red
Stripe beer rules! It’s a pale lager and the brewery also produces Red Stripe
Light, Dragon Stout and Malta, a non-alcoholic beverage. There is also
Kingston 62, alternately Kingston Beer, which is a pale lager also sold on
the island.
Regardless of my personal taste and opinion,
each Caribbean Island has a “highest rated beer” as measured by the unbiased “RateBeer”
dot com site. Here is the highest-rated beer for each Caribbean Island:
·
Jamaica- Guinness
Foreign Extra Stout
·
Bahamas- Pirate
Republic Black Beer’d Stout
·
Barbados-
Dreadhop Mahogany Bay Stout
·
Belize- Belikin
Sorrel Stout
·
Bermuda- North
Rock Black Anchor Porter
·
Bonaire-
Bonaire Herfst Bok
·
British Virgin
Islands- Cooper Island Turtle IPA
·
Cayman Islands-
345 Stout
·
Cuba- Puerto
del Rey Negra
·
Curacao-
Otrobanda IPA Curacao Beer
·
Dominican
Republic- Republica Guibia (pale ale)
·
Puerto Rico-
Ocean Lab Arroz Con Dulce (stout)
·
St. Kitts-
Jolly Roger Red Sail (IPA- red)
·
St. Martin-
Lost Blonde (blond ale/golden blond)
Back in the US of A, I like the Key West
Waterfront Brewery. Its choices of craft beer are diverse. I also enjoy the full
Caribbean fusion menu and, sometimes, I pretend I am back at the Conch Inn
Marina on Abaco, Bahamas! I did just that last month when there while enjoying the
view of the historic Key West Bight while sipping their Crazy Lady Honey Blond Ale
and wolfing down their Bahamian Conch chowder.
Lastly, I think you will enjoy this unique YouTube
video by Kenny, who hitchhikes to every brewery in the Florida Keys to see what
their beers are all about, from beer in Islamorada to beer Key West. Florida
Keys Breweries include Islamorada Brewery and Distillery, the Florida Keys
Brewery, the Waterfront Brewery, and the First Flight Island Restaurant and
Brewery. Enjoy!
Robert Morton is a member of the Association
of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), enjoys writing about the U.S.
Intelligence Community, and relishes traveling to the Florida Keys and Key
West, the Bahamas and Caribbean. He combines both passions in his CoreyPearson- CIA Spymaster series. Check out his latest spy thriller: MISSION OFVENGEANCE.
1 comment:
This is a great review of micro brewery beers. Made me thirsty!
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