Why Is Pulque Illegal

Pulque (Spanish: ['pulke] ⓘ; Classical Nahuatl: metoctli[1]), occasionally known as octli or agave wine, [2] is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey (agave) plant. It is traditional in central Mexico, where it has been produced for millennia. [3][4] It has the color of milk, a rather viscous consistency and a sour yeast-like taste. [5] The drink's history extends ...

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Pulque’s production is fueled in equal parts by a pride in national identity and by the microorganisms found within the drink that work alongside raspadores or tlachiqueros, the people behind its harvest, fermentation, and culture.

Pulque may be made from agave like tequila and mezcal, but it's an altogether different beverage with a unique taste and multifaceted history.

Pulque is a weird drink since it’s made of the fermented sap extracted from agave. And it’s been around since the Mesoamerican period. The first-ever depictions of Pulque come from the excavations at the Great Pyramid of Cholula. In 1969, a mural dedicated to the Pulque drinkers was painted around 1800 years ago. Despite all those paintings, the history of Pulque is deeply rooted in myths ...

Is pulque good? What does it taste like? What is pulque? Pulque 101 covers the basics while delving deep into pulque history and culture.

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Pulque, fermented alcoholic beverage made in Mexico since the pre-Columbian era. Cloudy and whitish in appearance, it has a sour buttermilk-like flavor and about 6 percent alcohol content. It is made from fermented aguamiel (‘honey water’), the sap of any of several species of the agave, or maguey, plant.

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Pulque is a pre-Hispanic beverage with a consistency reminiscent of kombucha, if kombucha were made from okra. It’s about as alcoholic as beer, but it’s made from the lightly fermented sap of the agave—the same plant that’s used to make tequila and mezcal. The flavor, once you acquire a taste for it, is intriguingly zingy. Natural, or plain, pulque is an opaque milky color but fizzy ...

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The Drink of the Gods: An Introduction to Pulque - Serious Eats