IZTAC OCTLI

Pulque, or octli, is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice sap of the maguey plant, and is a traditional native beverage of Mexico.[1] The drink’s history extends far back into the Mesoamerican period, when it was considered sacred, and its use was limited to certain classes of people. it is made by fermenting the sap of certain types of maguey (agave) plants. In contrast, mescal is made from the cooked heart of certain agave plants, and tequila, a variety of mescal, is made all or mostly from the blue agave. There are about six varieties of maguey that are best used for the production of pulque.[1][2] The name “pulque” is derived from Nahuatl. The original name of the drink was “iztac octli,” the term pulque was probably mistakenly derived by the Spanish from the “octli poliuhqui” which meant spoiled pulque.
THE MAGUEY PLANT
The maguey plant, also called a “century plant” in English is native to Mexico. It grows best in the cold, dry climates of the rocky central highlands to the north and east of Mexico City, especially in Hidalgo and Tlaxcala states. Maguey has been cultivated at least since 200 C.E. in Tula, Tulancingo and Teotihuacan, and wild plants have been exploited for far longer. The plant historically has had a number of uses. Fibers can be extracted from the thick leaves to make rope or fabric, its thorns can be used as needles or punches and the membrane covering the leaves can be used as paper or for cooking.The name “maguey” was given by the Spanish, who picked it up from the Taíno. This is still its common name in Spanish, with “agave” being its technical name. The ancient Nahuatl name was “metl.
It is not known who invented pulque; its origins go back at least 1,000 years. Various stories and myths have developed as to its origins. Most involve Mayahuel, the goddess of the maguey. It was thought that the aguamiel collecting in the center of the plant was her blood. Other deities, such as the Centzon Totochtin (400 rabbits) are associated with it, by representing the drink's effects, and are the children of Mayahuel. Another version involving Mayahuel has her as a mortal woman who discovered how to collect aguamiel but someone named Pantecalt discovered how to make pulque.

Another story states that pulque was discovered by the Tlacuache (opossum), who used his human-like hands to dig into the maguey and extract the naturally fermenting juice. He became the first drunk. Tlacuache was thought to set the course of rivers. The rivers he set were generally straight except when he was drunk. Then they follow Tlacuache’s meandering path from cantina to cantina. Another story traces the discovery of aguamiel to the Toltec Empire, when a noble named Papantzin was trying to get the emperor to marry his daughter Xochitl. He sent her to the capital with an offering of aguamiel. The emperor and princess wed, and their son was named Meconetzin (maguey boy).[10]In other versions of the story, Xochitl is credited with discovering pulque .
The maguey was one of the most sacred and important plants in ancient Mexico, having a privileged place in mythology, religious rituals and the Mesoamerican economy. During the this period, pulque appears in a number of graphic representations. Pulque first appears on stone carvings about 200 C.E. The first major work involving pulque is a large mural called the “Pulque Drinkers,” which was unearthed in 1968 during excavations at the pyramid of Cholula, Puebla. The most likely means of the discovery of aguamiel and fermented pulque was from the observation of rodents who gnaw and scratch at the plant to drink the seeping sap. Fermentation of the aguamiel can take place within the plant itself.[11]

For the Indians of the central highlands of Mexico, the imbibing of pulque was done only by certain people, under certain conditions. It was a ritual drink, consumed during certain festivals, such as that of the goddess Mayahuel, and the god Mixcoatl. It was drunk by priests and sacrificial victims, to increase the priests’ enthusiasm and to ease the suffering of the victim.[2] There are many references in Aztec codices, such as the Borbonicus Codex) of pulque’s use by nobility and priesthood to celebrate victories. Among commoners, it was permitted only to the elderly and pregnant women