Just before an August 4 article in The New York Times that likely served to increase its popularity, Topo Chico 12-packs of individual glass bottles started quietly being pulled from grocery store shelves. As of yesterday, stores across Houston were still out of the 12-packs, and there’s no word yet from the company on when they will return.
According to a statement from Topo Chico that was posted on Facebook in response to a fan’s concern about the missing packs, the boxes have been pulled because of faulty packaging. An unknown representative for the company wrote, “We had issues with our new craft cases where the glue wasn’t holding very well. So we pulled the product and will be restocking the shelves ASAP!”
Topo Chico is a sparkling mineral water sourced from a spring in Cerro del Topo Chico in Monterrey, Mexico. It is particularly beloved by bartenders because it makes for a highly carbonated mixer that is fairly neutral in flavor. The water has a mystical cachet as well, thanks to Topo Chico’s recounting of a legend in which an Aztec princess suffering from a nameless disease was healed by bathing in and drinking the spring water.
Fortunately, cocktail fans can breathe easy. The recall does not seem to have affected bars’ shipments, as we verified with Treadsack Group (which has Canard, Down House and others) and Lindsey Brown, public relations representative for Anvil Bar & Refuge, The Pastry War and 8-Row Flint. It appears to be an issue mainly for consumers. In the meantime, Topo Chico fans will have to console themselves with the other package options, like two-liter plastic bottles. For some reason, those just doesn’t seem as cool as the glass ones.
This article appears in Aug 4-10, 2016.