Among the most popular typical drinks of Guanajuato are tequila, aguardiente, colonche, mezcal and atole.
Guanajuato is located in the center of the republic, is a Unesco World Heritage Site and shines for its colorful colonial architecture.
Mezcal drink with lemon and salt
Cradle of independence, the picturesque city oozes stories and customs everywhere. Valuarte of traditional Mexican cuisine, it has been designated the Ibero-American Capital of Gastronomic Culture 2017.
Numerous canteens have been kept unchanged over time and informal food stalls offer a variety of traditional dishes and drinks.
Some of their traditional drinks
Much of Guanajuato's drinks have ties to pre-Columbian years.
Fresh waters
Made with a mixture of fresh fruits, ice, sugar and water that is then strained and served.
The most common are lemon, mango, pineapple, tamarind, strawberries, lime, hibiscus water (an infusion of the hibiscus flower) and horchata (rice water with a touch of cinnamon).
They are generally sold in the morning at street stalls. Like the smoothies, its whipped variant is with milk.
Pulque
With the alcoholic content of beer, pulque has been traditional in Mexico for more than 500 years
For its preparation, the "mead", a sweet juice derived directly from the agave, is fermented.
Nowadays it is usually flavored with coconut or other fruits. It is achieved especially in bars known as "pulquerías"
Mezcal
Like pulque, mezcal is also produced from the agave plant.
The process consists of first roasting the hearts of the plants before extracting, fermenting and distilling the juice. It is made by hand and comes entirely from agave without any additives.
Tequila, on the other hand, a form of mezcal, is usually produced industrially, with a minimum of 51% agave. It is generally of less defined flavor and aromas.
The maguey worm usually accompanies some bottles of mezcal but never one of tequila.
Both are usually drunk immediately accompanied with the typical lime and salt, or with the "sangrita" (a preparation of orange, grenadine, chili and, sometimes, tomato juice).
Tears of the Virgin
It is named for the 7 pains that the Virgin suffered for her son and that are equated with the pain of mothers whose children lose their lives in the mines.
It is specially prepared on Friday of sorrows. For its preparation, a mixture of beets (beets), lettuce, lime, banana, apple, orange, water and sugar is required. It is recommended to drink very cold.
Colonche
Also called nochol. It is achieved by fermenting the cardona red prickly pear.
It can only be prepared in the months of July and October, which is when the nopal bears fruit. Its elaboration has not changed for at least two thousand years.
Prickly pears are peeled and squeezed, then strained through straw to remove the seeds. The juice is boiled and left to ferment naturally.
The resulting is a reddish brandy.
References
- Reasons to visit Guanajuato. Obtained from nationalgeographic.com.es
- Food & Drinks. Obtained from don quijote.org
- About Guanajuato. Retrieved from whatguanajuato.com
- Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines. Retrieved from unesco.org
- Colonche. A tradition on the verge of extinction. Obtained from gob.mx