Food & Drink
The 10 Best Imported Beers on Gopuff
Need to broaden your beer horizons? Try out our picks for the best imported beers available for quick delivery with Gopuff
April 6, 2021
Over the years, the United States has made a name for itself in the beer industry—it’s home to a range of refreshing domestics and hoppy craft masterpieces alike. But the fact that we’re spoiled here doesn’t mean you should ignore foreign offerings outright. In fact, imported beers offer an excellent way to diversify your taste, experience new flavors and develop a greater appreciation of the history of beer as a whole. To help you discover which foreign tastes you like best, we created a list of the 10 best imported beers, all of which you can get delivered to your house immediately with Gopuff.
One quick note, though—some of these beers are imports in name only, and are actually brewed in the U.S. (among other locations around the world). We’ve included them anyway, since they’re often still marketed as imports and are worth trying, if only to spice up your usual drink lineup.
Best Mexican Beer: Modelo Chelada Mango y Chile
The Details
Brewer: Grupo Modelo
Beer Style: Michelada-style beer
ABV: 3.5%
Why It’s Great
When you consider how many Mexican beers have made it to U.S. shelves, Modelo Chelada Mango y Chile may seem like a funny selection for a best-of list. We’re big into unique brews, though, and this one is nothing if not distinctive.
Modelo actually sells several Chelada beers inspired by the classic michelada, a beer-based cocktail enhanced with lime juice and other seasonings, but Mango y Chile’s exemplary balance of fruity-spicy flavors takes the cake in terms of quality. It’s a lot like cracking open a can of sunshine and sipping on the essence of a day spent luxuriating at a tropical resort.
Love to explore new flavors? Order it alongside the other Modelo Chelada beers, including Modelo Chelada Especial, Modelo Chelada Tamarindo and Modelo Chelada Limon Y Sal.
More beer from Mexico:
Best German Beer: Franziskaner Weissbier Naturtrub
The Details
Brewer: Spaten-Franziskaner-Löwenbräu-Gruppe
Beer Style: Hefeweizen
ABV: 5.0%
Why It’s Great
Franziskaner Weissbier Naturtrub is the perfect beer for anyone who’s sick of drinking domestics, but isn’t quite ready to venture into heavier beer styles, like IPAs or Belgian tripels. Brewed in the hefeweizen style (a direct translation of “yeast wheat”), this German wheat beer serves up a delectably bready flavor that’s rounded out with hints of fruit and spice. Crack open a bottle next time you’re grilling up red meat—you’ll be shocked at just how well the two work together.
More beer from Germany:
Think you’re in the mood for something heavier? Our list of the best IPAs should hit the spot.
Best Japanese Beer: Sapporo Premium
The Details
Brewer: Sapporo Breweries
Beer Style: Pale Lager
ABV: 4.9%
Why It’s Great
Originally brewed in the late 19th century, Sapporo is Japan’s oldest beer brand. The fact that it’s still a household name today is nothing short of impressive. Of course, it helps that Sapporo Premium Beer is an easy-drinker, with a welcoming aroma and a light flavor that doesn’t fall too far from most of the USA’s most delicious domestics.
More beer from Japan:
Best Irish Beer: Guinness Draught
The Details
Brewer: Guinness
Beer Style: Irish dry stout
ABV: 4.2%
Why It’s Great
Guinness Draught is something of an anomaly. Usually, when you think of a nation’s best-selling beer, it’s something like Bud Light or Corona. Both are popular, but neither is exceptional.
Guinness is different. It’s both Ireland’s best-selling beer and a legitimately fabulous example of an Irish dry stout. It’s dark in color, with a soft, velvety mouthfeel that many similar beers fail to emulate. Its flavor is equally spectacular, relaying noticeable maltiness with subtle notes of coffee and chocolate. It only takes a single sip to see why this classic remains at the top of the pack.
More beer from Ireland:
Best Belgian Beer: Leffe Blonde
The Details
Brewer: Abbaye de Leffe
Beer Style: Belgian blonde
ABV: 6.6%
Why It’s Great
Despite its branding as a traditional abbey ale, Leffe Blonde is no longer brewed in Abbaye Notre-Dame de Leffe. It’s instead brewed by InBev Belgium at the Stella Artois brewery, and the abbey earns royalties from its sales. Not particularly exciting.
The good news? This beer still rules. It’s crafted with an authentic abbey ale recipe informed by centuries of brewing knowledge, serving up a flavor that blends sweetness with spice, plus a marked yeastiness. A tiny touch of bitterness adds to its complexity.
More beer from Belgium:
Best Canadian Beer: Unibroue La Fin du Monde
The Details
Brewer: Unibroue
Beer Style: Belgian Tripel
ABV: 9%
Why It’s Great
Unibroue’s La Fin du Monde is a Quebecois heavy-hitter that’s popular among craft beer drinkers far and wide (which is why it also appears on our list of the best craft beers). Serving as the brewery’s flagship beer since it first dropped in 1994, this Belgian tripel delivers a rather complex palate that fuses coriander and banana flavors with warm spice and a hint of yeast. Its 9% ABV may sound high, but it’s well-hidden, so drink with caution.
More beer from Canada:
Best From England: Bass Pale Ale
The Details
Brewer: Bass Brewers
Beer Style: English pale ale
ABV: 5%
Why It’s Great
First established in 1777, Bass Brewery was once one of the biggest names in beer, producing nearly a million barrels a year by the end of the 19th century.
Over the years, however, things have changed. The brewery is now owned by Anheuser-Busch Inbev, and the Bass Pale Ale that’s sold in the U.S. is made in New Hampshire. Technically, it’s not even an import.
So why’s it on our list?
For one, Bass Pale Ale is still a genuinely great beer. There’s a breadiness to its flavor that’s balanced nicely with floral notes and a somewhat bitter finish.
The second reason is that it’s a crucial piece of beer history that every beer lover should try at least once. Bass dominated England’s beer industry for years, and while it’s no longer the superpower it once was, this beer helps ensure that its legacy isn’t forgotten.
More beer from England:
Best From the Czech Republic: Pilsner Urquell
The Details
Brewer: Plzeňský Prazdroj
Beer Style: Pilsner
ABV: 4.4%
Why It’s Great
First brewed in 1842, Pilsner Urquell thoroughly upended the beer game. In fact, this famous Czech beer is generally considered the main reason why most of the world’s best-selling beers are pilsner-style lagers to this day.
Pilsner Urquell has been brewed with the same recipe since it debuted, which naturally makes this a beer every aficionado needs to try. It’s clean, crisp and refreshing, though it’s maltier than you might expect if you’re used to drinking mass-market American beer.
Best Dutch Beer: Heineken
The Details
Brewer: Heineken
Beer Style: Pale lager
ABV: 5%
Why It’s Great
Heineken is a classic Dutch lager that’s been around since the late 19th century, and it’s known for the fruitiness imbued by the legendary A-yeast with which it’s brewed. It’s a fairly crushable beer, all things considered, but its flavor offers a malty complexity that makes it more interesting than many other non-craft brews.
More beer from the Netherlands:
Best Danish Beer: Carlsberg
The Details
Brewer: Carlsberg Group
Beer Style: Pale Lager
ABV: 5%
Why It’s Great
Carlsberg, like Pilsner Urquell, Heineken and Bass Pale Ale, is another trend-setting beer that’s been enjoyed for decades upon decades in bars and homes around the world. This pale Danish lager is made with a proprietary hop blend, known as the Carlsberg Aroma Hop Extract, which lends the beer a hoppy, bready flavor that’s both deliciously approachable and instantly recognizable.
Imports, crafts and more
Think you’re ready to travel the world of import beer? We’ve got you covered. But don’t stop there—make sure to sift through our stock of craft beer and domestics, too.
