Pulque is fleeting — it’s here, it’s gone. But does that mean it’s harder to make than mezcal? Chava and I duke it out over a subject neither of us can speak to — and bring in academic Gonzalo Álvarez-Ríos, who we call Dr. Pulque, to settle the matter. And we somehow land on the rare red pulque. It’s a full liter of an episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. It’s hosted by Lou Bank and Chava Periban. 

Notes

To read the many papers that Gonzalo Álvarez-Ríos has written about pulque, click here!

Check out “No One Wants to Dig for Worms Anymore,” by Lydia Carey, for Eater, August 1, 2023!

Reina Cortés Cortés at A & V La Casa del Pulque makes unbelievable pulque! Go visit her in Santiago Matatlan, Oaxaca!

Dalton Kreiss runs Maguey Melate!

If you have a burning desire for gusanos, escamoles, and other delicious critters, get yourself to El Capo De Chinicuiles, Escamoles Y Pulque in Acelotla de Ocampo, Hidalgo! That’s where we took this pic of Gonzalo.