Travelling across South America, it quickly becomes clear that if you want a top notch beer, you’d be well advised to get one that has been produced in Mexico.

But Latin America isn’t the only market that Mexican beer dominates.

With a long history of quality beer at good prices, Mexico also comes out tops worldwide – and there’s proof: in 2010, it became the top exporter of beer in the world, reports HuffPost, just beating out Holland.

So, what beer is to thank for propelling their country to the top of that list? Corona might be one of the country’s best-selling beers, but that doesn’t mean that it’s the country’s best tasting or most authentic beer.

Nope, because it’s actually a different Mexican beer which lays claim to that title.

Having recently launched in South Africa with a digital marketing campaign second to none, Sol is the beer you should be ordering if you want true authenticity.

In 1899, 26 years before the advent of Corona, in a brewery near Pico de Orizaba, the highest peak in Mexico, a brewer created a light, refreshing beer made from the water closest to the sun.

The story goes that, as the brewer held up the beer, a ray of sun peeped through a hole in the roof onto the transparent bottle and, in honour of the sun, inspired the name Sol.

And so Mexico’s first beer in a transparent bottle was created with a spirit of freedom – or espiritu libre.

Decades later and Mexicans know that Sol is an integral part of the Mexican spirit, and is a beer that pays tribute and respect to the culture from which it derived its identity.

In fact, in Mexico, Corona is the beer of “gringos” – or in other words, tourists.  Always key to ask the locals, because they tend to know best.

At its best served ice cold, Sol will give you a chance to experience Mexico one sip at a time – which is great if you have yet to visit.

When you’re knocking a few back this weekend, drink Sol if you want a beer that inspires a feeling of freedom, and enjoy life by embracing the positive energy of the sun.

They’re all about a life lived not in the shadows, but in the light of the sun – I’m sure most of us South Africans can relate.

[source:huffpost]