Mexican Craft Beer Depicts Trump as Swastika-Wearing Mariachi

Here's one way to create a sure-to-sell craft beer: Adorn it with a label picturing President Trump as a nasty mariachi, wearing a too-tight, bedazzled suit, a tie in the colors of the Mexican flag, a big hat emblazoned with the words "Fuck You," and a swastika belt buckle. Then, you also might want to state on the reverse side of the label that Trump belongs "in a mad house, not the White House." Give your beer the intentionally misspelled name of Amigous (not Amigos) Cerveza, and it's sure to be a winner!

We know that to be the truth—and not fake truth, but the real truth—because that's what Mexico City's Casa Cervecera Cru Cru recently did. The brewery released an IPA with a hint of mango and a label matching the aforementioned description last month, and the first batch of 1,200 bottles sold out in just a few days. Also gone in a jiffy were an additional 400 liters available on tap.

Perhaps the success of the cerveza should come as no surprise, given that President Trump has made few friends south of the border. It probably didn't help when, during his campaign, he said, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best… They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems to us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists."

Still, the makers of the beer—created in partnership with Salt Lake City's Epic Brewing Company—claim the limited edition was meant to symbolize harmony across borders. The brewers say they are pleasantly surprised by how well it sold.

Luis Enrique de la Reguera, chief executive of brewery Casa Cervecera Cru Cru, told MUNCHIES that the brewers' intention was not to be cruel: "What we are not trying to do with the label is to mock." Regarding President Trump, de la Reguera said, "Maybe in at the bottom of his heart he really loves Mexico, so we decide to push him." Then again, he said, he understands that the people of the US do not necessarily share all of Trump's beliefs. "We think that you guys in the states are really cool people but your president doesn't represent that."

His priority, de la Reguera said, "is to make great beer, and we achieve that with this tasty beer," and some Americans are indeed eager to get their hands on the craft brew. To cite just one example of many, Hal Monitor wrote on the Cru Cru Facebook page, "I live in Houston, Texas… I really, really want some Amigous Cerveza. How can I get some here?… could I get a couple or four empty bottles with fresh labels? I am sure there is a tremendous market for this product in El Norte. Muchas gracias. Soy serio [I'm serious.]"

Import restrictions may make sale of the beer in the US near-impossible, but the pale ale with a hint of mango is said to be delicious—and it certainly packs a wallop of a political statement. Salud!