Traditional Mexican alcoholic beverages prepared by fermenting the fresh sap, or aguamiel, of the agave plant. Naturally occurring yeasts and bacteria convert the sap’s sugars into a mildly alcoholic, slightly viscous, whitish drink with a characteristic sour tang, consumed fresh since it spoils quickly. Pulque has deep pre-Hispanic roots and remains culturally significant in central Mexico, where pulquerías serve it plain or flavored with fruits and nuts as curados. Its short shelf life and living microflora demand hygienic collection and rapid consumption or refrigeration, distinguishing it from distilled agave spirits such as tequila and mezcal.