There was a time when traveling meant unearthing every last brewery in a given area, and visiting them all. While I’m still (somewhat) guilty of doing this, there are certain destinations that call for quantity over quality.
Cabo San Lucas is one of them. The obvious play here is ordering cheap shots of tequila chased by one Pacifico Light after the other. But me being me, I did my due diligence in prospecting the local craft situation. Baja Brewing came up more than once, not only when I was explicitly seeking out beer options but also when I was doing my “things you need to see in Cabo” Googling.
“See the sunset at Baja Brewing, you won’t want to miss it.”
“Best view in Cabo!”
You get the idea.
I decided it was worth it to sacrifice a night of fresh-off-the-flat-top street tacos to check it out. We took an elevator to the roof of a brand-new resort building and stepped out into the cool evening air. Like every rube who comes by, I’m sure, we asked the hostess for a good seat with a view. She walked us slowly towards the front of the patio, which overlooked Playa El Médano, briefly considering a few open tables before setting our menus on the table.
We dined with unobstructed views of Bahía San Lucas as the day’s light faded from bright oranges to soft pinks and purples over its distinctive rock formation, El Arco. I took picture after picture of the scene below, because it didn’t look real and the photos were the only way to prove it really existed. And because they were a reminder of how exhilarated I felt, being a world away from home after two years of blunted emotion, staring at the walls of my apartment. And also because I was both sun-drunk and good old-fashioned drunk.
The food was fine; we had pizza. The beer, brewed by Mexican craft brewers who had spent years working in Southern California before bringing their talents back home, was excellent. And the view really was spectacular. I have the pictures to prove it.
