Mexican Independence Day: Celebrate with Pre-Hispanic Drinks

To celebrate Mexican Independence Day, we invited Abraham Delgado @abraham.idf and Gabriela Arroyo @mooncake.rur of @matildemiamor in Guadalajara and former Altos Tahona Society Winner, to suggest three drinks with pre-Hispanic ferments as the main ingredients. Here’s the result. Are you ready to raise a toast for “El Grito de Independencia?”

Credits: Science Direct, International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science, Punch

Mexico is characterized by a great variety of “hyper-regional” traditional non-distilled fermented beverages that play an important role in Mexican culture. We embrace the opportunity to showcase what is still an underrepresented side of Mexico’s drink culture. The use of ancestral beverages opens the door to creating new and exciting cocktails. So, we join the trend where everything old is new again.

No matter where they come from, maize, cactus, or agave… these plants played an important part in the country’s beverage heritage. In fact, a single sip of any pre-Hispanic drink represents thousands of years of Mexican history!

For example, tejuino is a traditional non-distilled fermented beverage made of maize, consumed during cultural ceremonies by ethnic groups in some of Mexico’s states. It is made by mixing nixtamalized corn, water, lemon, and brown sugar. For many bars around the world, tejuino helped to widen the perception of Mexican culture besides palomas and margaritas. 

For production, it has an artisanal process, which consists of the fermentation of germinated maize, or a commercial process, which consists of the fermentation of nixtamalized maize. It’s left to mature for two or three days in a clay pot covered with cloth, so the alcohol content is very low.

During fermentation, lactic acid bacteria, yeast, and fungi play important roles in developing the sensory and nutritional characteristics of this beverage. However, few studies have been made on this traditional fermented beverage to date. 

Tejuino is typically sold by street vendors around the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco. It’s served cold with either lime juice and salt or lemon sorbet. Even though it’s somewhat thick, it’s very refreshing! 

Here is Abraham’s and Gabriela’s cocktail creation, where tejuino takes center stage:

Mi che juino

Ingredients 

• 30 ml Altos Plata 
• 70 ml Tejuino
• 40 ml Clamato
• 15 ml Lime juice
• 2 dashes Scrappy’s Firewater Bitters
• 1 pinch of salt
• Baby corn for garnish
• Salt and pepper for rim
  
  

Method

Add all the ingredients to a Boston shaker (the tin part) with ice. Slowly mix the ingredients using the throwing technique. Pour the mix on a rimmed glass and garnish with baby corn.

Pulque: A milky, pre-Hispanic brew 

Pulque is an ancestral beverage that has accompanied Mexicans since time immemorial. 

Nutritious, refreshing and slightly intoxicating, it is known as aoktli in Náhuatl. It is, without a doubt, the most well-known of the pre-Hispanic drinks. It’s made by fermenting aguamiel, a sweet juice extracted from the agave plant. 

The tlachiqueros are responsible for extracting this “honey water” from the maguey plants. They make an incision in the heart of the maguey called a cajete, from which the aguamiel flows. This liquid is then collected using an instrument called an acocote.

Spanish chroniclers documented its production and consumption, from Fray Bernardino de Sahagún to Fray Juan de Torquemada, Toribio Benavente, and Francisco Hernández. These chronicles highlight the nutritional properties of pulque while condemning drunkenness and its excesses. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún enumerates its medicinal qualities, emphasizing that pulque is accompanied by all medicinal intakes mixed with other ingredients.

Until the mid-1930s, when the boom of the brewing industry began to overshadow it, pulque was a popular drink enjoyed throughout the country.

It’s currently going through a revival, and whether natural or cured (when fruits or seeds are added during the preparation process), it can be found in bars and specialized stores called pulquerías.

Traditionally, pulque has been produced in the country’s central and southwestern states, primarily in the pulque-producing regions of Chalco, the Valley of Apan, the Valley of Tizayuca, the Sierra de las Cruces, the Valley of Cuernavaca, Zempoala, Huamantla, and Cholula.

However, for U.S.-based bartenders, the availability of distilled pulque, a higher-proof alternative to the ready-to-drink options, presents an intriguing new spirit and a platform for educating guests about its fermented predecessor. 

Are you ready to discover the cocktail with pulque that Abraham has specially prepared for you?

Isal Alacrán

Ingredients 

• 30 ml Altos Plata
• 60 ml Pulque 
• 30 ml Strawberry and passion fruit cordial
• 15 ml Coconut cream
• 40 ml Coconut milk
• Sprig of fresh mint for garnish
• Half a strawberry for garnish
  
  

Method 

Add all the ingredients to a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and serve.

Tepache used to be a “corn drink”?

 

The third ancestral beverage we have chosen to celebrate Mexico’s Independence is tepache. 

This drink is made from pineapple peels, pulp, and juice accompanied by piloncillo (unrefined cane sugar). It is commonly used and widespread throughout much of the Mexican territory. Due to its sweetness and a slight touch of acidity, it is incredibly satisfying to the taste!

Originally, tepache was made from corn. In fact, that’s where its name comes from, as tepache derives from the word tepiatl, which literally means “corn drink.”

In any case, it is an emblematic beverage, and although the most common method of preparation involves the fermentation of pineapple and piloncillo, it can also be made using tibicos or búlgaros (water kefir grains), which are macro-colonies of bacteria that enhance the fermentation process. 

The use of these bacteria makes the preparation of this drink much easier. It only requires leaving the piloncillo water, along with fresh water and the tibicos, in a glass container for approximately 72 hours, and the tepache will be ready to drink! Take a look at its traditional recipe here.  

To finish, we present you this delightful tepache cocktail, crafted under the masterful direction of the great Abraham!

Milpero

Ingredients 

• 40 ml Altos Plata
• 25 ml Green tomato and jalapeño syrup
• 25 ml Lime juice
• 30 ml Mango soda
• 40 ml Tepache
  
  

Method 

Add the tepache to a tall, salt-rimmed glass with ice. Mix the remaining ingredients in a shaker and pour the mix on top.