Chicha Jora, An Ancient Corn Beer

Planting Corn Seeds

One of the best Peruvian corn varieties implies produced in the Urubamba Valley, which on average is 30 cm. (almost one foot) long and has significant and delicious fleshy grains. In ancient Peru, corn had a Sacred and Mystical character.

The magic liquor of the Incas

Chicha de Jora – Inca Beer

In the Chicha de Jora, in hundreds of small towns throughout the whole Cusco region, communities of peasants gather their members to transport the corn from their plots to their homes in the village, where They will dry corn under the sun, trash, and store. Such groups are led by a “captain” and often joined by musicians. In the end, a different mixture of boiled water, flour, and sugar does add to the product. As liquor Chicha de Jora should imply consumed on the same day, it becomes available to avoid excessive fermentation and the loss of its foam.

Planting Corn Seeds Chicherias or Aqha Wasi, sort of Andean bars where Chicha happens consumed in public, play an essential role in the social life of Cusco and of many small towns in the Urubamba valley.