What is Tepache & What's the Best Way to Use It in Cocktails?
Tepache, a delightful probiotic beverage made from naturally fermented pineapple rinds, cores, and scraps, originated on the streets of Mexico but is taking hold elsewhere as no-to-low alcohol, sustainable beverages become universally popular refreshments.
What Is It?
Typically brewed with piloncillo, a flavorful Mexican brown sugar, and canela, the soft Ceylon cinnamon commonly used in Mexico, the longer tepache ferments, the more sugar is converted, making it taste less sweet, more tangy and fizzy, and have a higher alcohol content, although it tends to top out at a negligible 1-2%.
Traditionally, the drink is served simply, chilled, and unadorned often ladled from a giant jar on a street cart. Tepache’s slight effervescence, dry flavor profile, and a hint of fruit and spice, however, also make it a great mixer. Plus, as bars and restaurants nationwide become more conscious of utilizing waste, fruit peels and other items that used to head for the compost bin or garbage can often end up in a fermenting crock.
Tepache in Cocktails
At El Mero Taco in Memphis, the El Mero Sling is built with housemade tepache, banana liqueur, and the guest’s choice of mezcal, sotol, aguardiente, or tequila, served over ice in a terra cotta cup known as a cantarito, garnished with a pineapple leaf so that every bit of the fruit is used. Says beverage director Rachel LaFraniere, “the sotol pulls out more of the herbal notes from the tepache” but she loves “the deep full beauty of the balance you get from the mezcal’s smokiness.” LaFraniere uses gentian root, a bittering agent typically found in tonic water and amari, along with citrus peels in addition to the pineapple cores and skin, to create a complex brew that ferments for a week.
Nitro Tepache Photo by Kim Haasarud
At Garden Bar Phoenix mixologist Kim Haasarud plays with tepache in fun, non-alcoholic chilled “whips” using nitro chargers to aerate the beverage, which she serves at her garden-to-glass cocktail business.
Maracuya Magic Photo by Christine Wiseman Bar Hojajpeg
At Taqueria Hoja in Miami, beverage director Christine Wiseman combines tart passionfruit, mezcal, and tepache on ice to create the Maracuya Magic. “I love this cocktail because it is ever-evolving,” says Wiseman, referring to the way tepache and other traditional small batch fermented beverages--like pulque (from agave) and tejuino (from corn masa)--can vary from batch to batch based on fermentation temperature and the natural levels of sugar in the fruit.
Alex Valencia created the Tepache Apache cocktail for La Contenta on New York’s Lower East Side to “promote Mexican culture through ancestral beverages.” The potent but fruity mix of mezcal, house tepache, orange juice, and additional pineapple juice served in ceramic mug pairs beautifully with their rustic Mexican menu.
RTD Tepache
Like it’s probiotic and prebiotic cousin kombucha, tepache is now appearing on grocer’s shelves in canned and bottled form from small producers like Big Easy in New Orleans and De La Calle out of Los Angeles. De La Calle’s colorful cans come in four clean, fruity flavors including tamarind, turmeric, ginger, and spiced pineapple that are outstanding on their own, or as handy home bar mixers with tequila, mezcal, and rum. Make a simple highball or get creative and pop a can to lengthen a more complex drink. Better still, save up your pineapple cores and rinds to brew up a batch in your own kitchen.