title: The Artisanal Production of Pulque, a Traditional Beverage of the Mexican Highlands.
abstract: Pulque is a traditional fermented alcoholic, acidic, viscous drink of the Mexican central highlands. Its production from the "aguamiel" (sap) of agave plants dates back ~1,500 years and continues to be made by artisanal methods. However, the variability of pulque's quality and its instability hamper its widespread distribution and consumption. Microbiological surveys of pulque from three ranches revealed tremendous variability in the types and quantity of the indigenous microbiota. The population of lactic acid bacteria ranged from 6 × 10(7) to 2 × 10(11) CFU/mL. This variability might be attributed to the conditions on the ranches where the pulque was made. In an attempt to identify these sources of variability, the microbial populations of aguamiel and pulque from a single agave plant were determined. Surprisingly, the population size of the "unfermented" aguamiel and the pulque converged by the end of 3 weeks. The potential use of bacteriocinogenic LAB and known starter cultures to improve pulque properties are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Agroindustrias, Universidad Tecnológica de la Mixteca, Carr. a Acatlima km. 2.5, C.P. 69000, Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Rogelio
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Valadez-Blanco
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Agroindustrias, Universidad Tecnológica de la Mixteca, Carr. a Acatlima km. 2.5, C.P. 69000, Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Griselda
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bravo-Villa
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Agroindustrias, Universidad Tecnológica de la Mixteca, Carr. a Acatlima km. 2.5, C.P. 69000, Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Norma F
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Santos-Sánchez
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Agroindustrias, Universidad Tecnológica de la Mixteca, Carr. a Acatlima km. 2.5, C.P. 69000, Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Sandra I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Velasco-Almendarez
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Rutgers, The State University, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA. montville@aesop.rutgers.edu.
authors.forename: Thomas J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Montville
keywords: Aguamiel; Fermented beverage; Pulque