Pulque

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Pulque is is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of the maguey, and is a traditional native beverage of Mesoamerica. Though commonly believed to be a beer, the main carbohydrate is a complex form of fructose rather than starch.

The maguey plant is not a cactus (as has sometimes been mistakenly suggested) but an agave, elsewhere called the "century plant". The plant was one of the most sacred plants in Mexico and had a prominent place in mythology, religious rituals, and Mesoamerican industry.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulque

Anyone ever had it?

I want to try it in its authentic and commercial forms.

Here is the only commercial brand I could find.
http://www.pulquelalucha.com/
For awhile I saw that it could be purchased in the Chicago area. It looks like tha is no longer the case.

The distributor is located in San Antonio, TX
http://www.boulderimports.com/

http://www.pulquelalucha.com/pulque.html
According to this it is available in:
Houston
Beaumont
Galveston
Palestine
Katy
and Conroe

Anyone in that area that can find it would be in a strong trading position with me.

Tell me if you've seen/had it.
 
I've had it, but it was from some guy selling it on a street corner in downtown Mexico City. It tasted OK, I think mine was mixed with limeade. Apparently it is almost impossible to ship it, because it sours easily. Mostly it is drunk the day it is brewed.
 
I only know of it from the History channel, (or was it Discovery?)and I've wanted to try it and the other stuff that is made of a starchy kinda plant from South America. That one is called a 'beer' too, but I can't recall what that plant is, but IIRC, it is a staple food for them and is used in ceremony-wedding is what I think was the filmed event. The woman make it.
Gotta think that the commercial versions are not very similar to the originals, though....probably hafta grow it and make it to actually come close. Bet you can't find a recipe for it though,LOL!
 
I have a friend from Chiapas. He speaks fondly of it and his family has made it down there. It may take a long time to get technical questions answered, but maybe not impossible. Yeast would be another question...

I believe that agave nectar is commercially available. I do not know whether you need the pulp or other parts of the plant to make an authentic one.
 
To be authentic, you need the pulp. The agave nectar available commercially is almost without any distinquishing flavor.
 
Yesterday there was a news story that farmers are BURNING their agave and planting CORN, because it is paying so much due to ethanol production price pressure.

100% blue agave tequila is gonna SKYROCKET! :mad:
 
Henry Hill said:
Yesterday there was a news story that farmers are BURNING their agave and planting CORN, because it is paying so much due to ethanol production price pressure.

100% blue agave tequila is gonna SKYROCKET! :mad:
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:D

Good for the farmers who stay growing Agave!

Anyways, I haven't had it, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn.

Seriously though, I saw an episode of this show on the food network called "A cook's tour" where the host, Anthony Bourdain ould go all over the world trying food and drink. He had Pulque on one episode and the thing that makes Pulque so....er...inviting is that it has a very viscous, slimy texture from the Maguey. He mentioned it was like drinking snot. :D
 
zoebisch01 said:
:D
Seriously though, I saw an episode of this show on the food network called "A cook's tour" where the host, Anthony Bourdain ould go all over the world trying food and drink. He had Pulque on one episode and the thing that makes Pulque so....er...inviting is that it has a very viscous, slimy texture from the Maguey. He mentioned it was like drinking snot. :D
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The punchline is that you'ld never leave the house.

*Snare*
*Hi-hat*
 
If anybody is still reading this thread, my LHBS now sells Agave extract... reports as SG 1.028 for three pounds in three gallons of water.

I cannot find a recipe for it anywhere, though :(
 
coyotlgw said:
If anybody is still reading this thread, my LHBS now sells Agave extract... reports as SG 1.028 for three pounds in three gallons of water.

I cannot find a recipe for it anywhere, though :(
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Talk to someone at HomeBrewDepot. Sean maybe. Someone there mad an awesome Agave Saison at the AHA.

BTW I saw the re-run of the Thirsty Traveler about Mescal and Pulque but it was all background info and had no real brewing value.
 
I believe they take the agave and bake/roast it then extract/press the sap. It has been a long time since I read about agave so most of the details are lost. I will hunt through my notebooks and see what I can find. Is pulque simply the undistilled form of tequilla?
 
Brewpastor said:
Is pulque simply the undistilled form of tequilla?
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Yep, the Spaniards taught 'em how. Right before they gave them smallpox.
I guess it would be undistilled mezcal if you're technical.
 
coyotlgw said:
Heh... if the guys at HomeBrew Depot were wiling to "talk" we wouldn't all get fed up and go to Brewers' Connection ;)
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That's sad to hear.
I guess I've heard that about both places and it just depends on when you go and who's working, etc.

On the face of it , you'd think that it would be a fun shop to run, but if you read some of the threads here about LHBS service and attitude....:(

Seems to me that you need to be a people person that happens to be a brewer and not the comic book guy from the Simpsons.
 
coyotlgw said:
If anybody is still reading this thread, my LHBS now sells Agave extract... reports as SG 1.028 for three pounds in three gallons of water.

I cannot find a recipe for it anywhere, though :(
Click to expand...

I saw a documentary movie "La Cancion del Pulque" (see Canción del pulque, La (2003)) where the traditional process of making Pulque (as well as drinking it in pulquerias while singing) was portreyed. If I remember correctly, the agave juice was simply fermented, no special yeast added. I suppose it was wild yeast (or other type of wild bacteria).

In pulquerias it was served pure or mixed with various juices.

This is an amazing, poetic film. Among other things it showed the death of the culture of pulque and pulquerias.
 
A native giving me a tour asked me to try some in Toluca, just outside of Mexico City and I spent two days recovering. The plant manager for the factory that I was working for laughed his A$$ off when I told him I tried the Pulqua. Stick to the tequila, nothing bad can live in that stuff. I'm not trying to tell you what to do, just passing on my experience.
 
I live in Chicago and have tried the stuff available in cans. I didn't really care for it. It did have a pretty unique taste.

I haven't seen it lately in the shops.
 
Brewpastor said:
I believe they take the agave and bake/roast it then extract/press the sap. It has been a long time since I read about agave so most of the details are lost. I will hunt through my notebooks and see what I can find. Is pulque simply the undistilled form of tequilla?
Click to expand...

No, the production process differs. Tequila (or mezcal) is indeed made from the baked and mashed "heart" of the plant. Pulque is made from the sap (called aguamiel), which is collected from the plant while it is still living. This page has a detailed description of pulque production.
 
Hey I know this thread has been dead for about five years but if anyone is still interested in the topic, this lecture has just about everything you would ever care to learn about the traditional uses of agave. Jonathan Ott is one of the most knowledgable ethnobotanists around. There is a short intro from Lorenzo, the host of the podcast that you can skip if you like. Have fun!

"Inebriating Potions from Agave" by Jonathan Ott

http://www.matrixmasters.net/salon/?p=374
 

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