Typical Peruvian drinks
During your trip to Peru you will have the opportunity to test a whole variety of different drinks, each of them very typical of the country. Put your bottled water and American fizzy drinks aside. It's time to test the local drinks, all 100% Peruvian.
Alcoholic drinks
The most popular alcoholic beverage that you drink, in moderation of course, during your trip to Peru is called pisco. It's a famous spirit with an alcohol content of around 40°. It is made from grapes and is used as an ingredient in many cocktails. The most famous of all is the delicious Pisco sour. To make it, pisco is mixed with lime juice, sugar cane syrup, an egg white, six ice cubes and a few drops of angostura bitters. And there you are - 100% Peruvian.
Amongst the dozens of Peruvian beers available, the most popular are Cusqueña, Pilsen, Cristal, Tres Cruces and Arequipeña. In the mountains chicha de jora is a very popular beer made from maize. You can try it in one of the many chicherias, or beer bars.
Wine enthusiasts can try out bottles of Tabernero, Tacama and Ocucaje.
The most intrepid amongst you can profit from a stay with the Indians in the jungle by drinking some masato. Are you sure you want to know what it is? Well, too bad, it's a drink made from manioc that has been chewed and spat out then fermented for two days with a little water and sugar.
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Non-alcoholic drinks
Let's start with the local star, Inca Kola. A meal's not a meal in Peru if you don't drink this bright yellow fizzy drink with a strange chewing gum flavour. It's so popular that consumption rates have taken over from that of the legendary Coca-Cola. It's one of the things Peru is most proud of.
Chicha morada is very refreshing. It's a delicious drink make by boiling a purple maize mixed with pineapple skin, cinnamon, cloves and sugar. It can be drunk warm but is even better served on ice. In the same family of drinks you can also try aguaje, with maracuyá or with camu-camu.
On the markets, the street vendors make moliente in front of you. This is a drink based on aloe vera that is drunk warm. The taste isn't bad but a sort of gum involved in its preparation gives it a thick texture that can provoke nausea.
On the markets you can also try a strange beverage said to be an aphrodisiac. Watch out to those who easily feel sick. It's a mixture of mysterious ingredients put in a blender with a live frog. Then it's whizzed up in front of you. Good luck; be brave.
Mate de coca, or coca tea, is surely South America' most famous drink. It's a very nice infusion of coca leaves made by soaking the leaves in boiling water and being well-known for helping you to overcome altitude sickness.
