Beer is also made in Sabana Grande.

Inspired to enter the world of craft beer Carlos Ayala and Eduardo Somoza Starting to experiment with making some drinks in 2011.

But, what started as a hobby turned into a brewery Reina Mora Brewing Company, established in 2019 in Sabana Grande, where they already produce about 250 barrels (7,700 gallons) per year. Thus, they are on a flight to achieve their goal of being crowned the “True Queen of Beer in Puerto Rico.”

This adventure began with the curiosity of Ayala, a mechanical engineer and co-founder of the company, which today has a variety of 16 craft beers.

,Because of my job as a mechanical engineer, I traveled a lot and was exposed to craft beer. However, it was not in the ‘boom’ that caught on until later, as craft beer already existed at the time. It always caught my attention and I tried everything I could. One day I met the owner of the Boqueron brewery, and we talked for a while and it was very interesting to me that some of the craft beers were starting to exist here in Puerto Rico. So, around 2011, I bought equipment to make beer at home,” the businessman said.

Thus, Ayala spent several years brewing beer at home as a hobby; While exploring and creating flavors, by 2018 he partnered with Somoza, also an engineer, to purchase larger capacity equipment.

“We wanted to see what would come out, because there was already some interest in craft beer from some areas. Earlier, both of us used to work in our free time in the afternoon and evening. We used to brew one beer a week. We started as a ‘hobby’. Then in 2019 it started taking shape when we started with the brewing license, that’s when we started serving a little more often,” the engineer said.

However, it was not until 2021 that they acquired devices with greater capacity. Therefore, they created a new structure that included hiring additional staff and other operational logistics adjustments.

“When we were structuring the business, we wanted it to be something that represented Puerto Rico, that was very local, but we didn’t want to be obvious. So whatever things we found, Queen Mora caught our attention because it is an endemic birdAyala said of the brewery’s name, “There’s a uniqueness to the colors because the male is the one with the brightest colors and that’s how we got the name.”

In fact, many of the names of the different varieties of beer from Reina Mora Brewing Company follow a connection with Puerto Rico or Sabana Grande, as is the case with the domestic beer, called Spindalis.

,Spindalis is the name of a domestic beer and is the scientific name for Moorish quince (Spindalis portoricensis)., This was one of the first recipes, and has been my go-to recipe since I started brewing beer at home. Spindalis and Milk Stout, which is a dark beer, both beers that I already brewed at home, were the first beers that we introduced at Reina Mora,” Ayala said.

Currently, Reina Mora Brewing Company has 16 beers, prominent among them are the following:

• bow tie
• seven inches
• Mother in law
• Unit 9,873
• Bembe
• Take the Lai (Christmas Beer)
• charamusca
• SusuaIn others.

Of those, they keep about six for sale throughout the year, as the rest are seasonal or collaborative.

“We try to adapt the flavors and styles to the tropical regions, making them refreshing beers in this type of climate. Many of them will have flavor characteristics, but in a way they are easy to take, We strive to incorporate the latest processing and manufacturing technologies. Also, local ingredients, as much as we can, because local ingredients are always a challenge, because the basic ingredients of the beer are not produced here, but we incorporate some that we have,” the entrepreneur. Mentioned.

process of Reina Mora Brewing Company’s products are 100% manufactured and packaged at the Sabana Grande location., and distributed at various points of sale around the island. “What’s special is that we do 100% manufacturing here and can do that, and not all breweries can do that in their own facilities. It’s something that sets us apart. We distribute beer throughout Puerto Rico, in both 16-ounce can and 5-gallon barrel formats, with barrel being what is sold most to businesses. We deliver basically all of Puerto Rico, except the eastern region, where we do not have an account yet. But we are in San Juan, Bayamon, Guaynabo, Caguas, Arecibo, Quebradillas, Isabela, Aguadilla, ” the businessman specified.

This is how the Reina Mora Brewing Company has taken its place in the craft beer market on the island and, although they do not yet have export plans, they try to go even further and increase their sales volumes with a canned product. “We want to continue to increase volume. We plan to continue expanding the CAN market, which is the market in which businesses have the opportunity to purchase it without having to acquire the equipment to serve it. In addition, we want to continue expanding in terms of capacity, as far as the equipment allows us,” Ayala said.

Reina Mora Brewing Company., operates from 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Fridays; On Saturday from 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm and on Sunday from 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm For more information, access the social network: Facebook as follows: queenmorabrewingco And on Instagram like: QueenmoraBrewing,