What does tesguino taste like?

Tesguino has an acidic and slightly bitter flavour, with earthy and herbaceous notes of fermented germinated maize. Its profile is reminiscent of kefir or rejuvelac, with a fresh-grass aftertaste and a hint of rustic bread. Its texture is thick and opaque, almost creamy, and it is served at room temperature in gourd cups during community tesguinadas.

What is the difference between tesguino and tejuino?

Although they share the Nahuatl linguistic origin (from tecuin, to beat) and are based on maize, they are distinct drinks. Tesguino is from northern Mexico (Raramuri, Chihuahua), made with germinated maize without sweetener, ritual and communal. Tejuino is from western Mexico (Jalisco, Colima), made with nixtamalised maize masa, piloncillo and lime, a sweet and commercial street drink, not ritual.

What role does tesguino play in Raramuri culture?

Tesguino is a sacred drink and social structuring agent: it regulates community work (korima), religious and agricultural celebrations, the rarajipari (men's) and ariweta (women's) ritual races, marriages, shamanic rituals and requests for rain. The anthropologist John Kennedy called Raramuri society 'the tesguino society' because of the unique articulating role of this drink in the indigenous life of the Sierra Madre.

Where is tesguino originally from?

It is native to the Sierra Madre Occidental, mainly the state of Chihuahua where the Raramuri (Tarahumara) people live, and also in Durango and Sonora with the Tepehuans and Pimas. Its production is documented at archaeological sites of northern Mesoamerica and described by 17th-century Jesuits such as Joseph Neumann, as well as by anthropologists such as Carl Lumholtz, John Kennedy and Luis Gonzalez Rodriguez.

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Tesguino: the Tarahumara maize beer

What is it?

Tesguino, also called batari in the Raramuri language, is a fermented drink of germinated maize traditional to the Raramuri (Tarahumara), Tepehuan and Pima peoples of the Sierra Madre Occidental, mainly in Chihuahua and parts of Durango and Sonora. Considered the Mesoamerican maize beer, it is made with nixtamalised or germinated maize, water and, occasionally, regional herbs that act as natural fermenters. It has a whitish-yellow colour, thick texture and an acidic-bitter, slightly earthy and refreshing flavour, with low alcohol content (3-6%). Tesguino is not an everyday drink but a ritual and communal one: it is prepared in large pots (tesguinadas) for religious celebrations, agricultural-cycle ceremonies, requests for rain, work-cooperation festivals (korima), rarajipari (traditional ball races) and wedding rituals. It is considered a sacred drink and connector between the Raramuri and their ancestors, occupying a central place in their cosmovision and community life.

Origin and history

Tesguino has a documented antiquity in the Sierra Tarahumara of more than 1,500 years, according to archaeological and ethnobotanical research by INAH and the Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua. The Raramuri have produced it since pre-Cortesian times as a ritual drink and an articulating element of community life. Fray Joseph Neumann, a 17th-century Jesuit missionary, described in his chronicles the central role of tesguino in Tarahumara society and the failed attempts by missionaries to suppress it. The Norwegian anthropologist Carl Lumholtz, in El Mexico desconocido (1902), devoted entire chapters to tesguino and the tesguinadas, describing their social and cosmogonic importance. Gob.mx, through INPI, recognises tesguino as an essential element of Raramuri culture. Larousse Cocina and Mexico Desconocido agree that tesguino is not only a drink but a social institution that regulates marriages, community work and religious ceremonies. The anthropologist John Kennedy even called Raramuri society the tesguino society because of its structuring role in the indigenous life of the Sierra Madre.

Characteristic ingredients

The traditional preparation of tesguino requires germinated maize (cuilxol): the maize is soaked for 24 hours, drained and left to germinate for 5-7 days covered with damp cloths until the radicle sprouts. The germinated maize is ground on a metate and cooked in water for several hours until it forms a thick atole, called batari. It is transferred to a large clay vessel (tesguinera pot, specific to each Raramuri family) and left to ferment for 24-72 hours at room temperature. Fermentation is carried out by natural microbiota of the germinated maize, the traditional pots and, in some variants, garambullo roots or pasto colorado that act as inoculants. Studies by CINVESTAV and UACH have identified lactic-acid bacteria (Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc) and yeasts (Saccharomyces) in tesguino that generate lactic acid, ethanol and B-complex vitamins. Its nutritional value is very high: it provides protein, lysine (scarce in other maize products), vitamins, iron and energy, helping to sustain Raramuri runners during races of up to 200 km in the sierra.

Cultural significance

Tesguino forms part of the dossier of Traditional Mexican Cuisine inscribed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010, and is recognised by INPI as an essential ritual drink of the Raramuri people. Its socio-cultural function is unique: it structures community work (korima), the celebrations of the Catholic-ancestral calendar (Holy Week, Day of the Dead), the rarajipari and ariweta ritual races, weddings and shamanic ceremonies. Preparation is assigned to Raramuri women (cosenima), who organise tesguinadas with intergenerational cooperation. Consumption takes place in gourd cups and is accompanied by music, dance and prayer. Despite its importance, the advance of drug trafficking, forced migration and cultural pressure have weakened the tradition in many communities, which motivated the creation of cultural centres and festivals such as the Ralliypa Raramuri and the Maize Festival in Creel. Researchers such as Luis Gonzalez Rodriguez (SJ) and Salvador Hernandez Pozo (UACH) document its biocultural value, while chef Daniel Hernandez Sanchez has brought tesguino to haute cuisine in projects such as Sustancia (Sonora).

Related recipes

Now that you know what it is, try cooking it at home with our step-by-step recipes:

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Frequently asked questions

What does tesguino taste like?: Tesguino has an acidic and slightly bitter flavour, with earthy and herbaceous notes of fermented germinated maize. Its profile is reminiscent of kefir or rejuvelac, with a fresh-grass aftertaste and a hint of rustic bread. Its texture is thick and opaque, almost creamy, and it is served at room temperature in gourd cups during community tesguinadas.
What is the difference between tesguino and tejuino?: Although they share the Nahuatl linguistic origin (from tecuin, to beat) and are based on maize, they are distinct drinks. Tesguino is from northern Mexico (Raramuri, Chihuahua), made with germinated maize without sweetener, ritual and communal. Tejuino is from western Mexico (Jalisco, Colima), made with nixtamalised maize masa, piloncillo and lime, a sweet and commercial street drink, not ritual.
What role does tesguino play in Raramuri culture?: Tesguino is a sacred drink and social structuring agent: it regulates community work (korima), religious and agricultural celebrations, the rarajipari (men's) and ariweta (women's) ritual races, marriages, shamanic rituals and requests for rain. The anthropologist John Kennedy called Raramuri society 'the tesguino society' because of the unique articulating role of this drink in the indigenous life of the Sierra Madre.
Where is tesguino originally from?: It is native to the Sierra Madre Occidental, mainly the state of Chihuahua where the Raramuri (Tarahumara) people live, and also in Durango and Sonora with the Tepehuans and Pimas. Its production is documented at archaeological sites of northern Mesoamerica and described by 17th-century Jesuits such as Joseph Neumann, as well as by anthropologists such as Carl Lumholtz, John Kennedy and Luis Gonzalez Rodriguez.