Tepache, a fermented beverage native to Mexico, has been enjoyed south of the border since pre-Columbian times, but to many Americans it’s still an unfamiliar drink, particularly as a commercial product. A handful of brands are looking to change that by upping the ABV and aiming for some of the current momentum behind Mexican distilled spirits and flavor-forward ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails.
A staple of Mexican street food culture across the country, tepache is commonly made with pineapple cores and rinds, spices, and sweetened with piloncillo (Mexican brown sugar), and typically a low ABV beverage. Recipes, including the primary fruit used, vary across regions, illustrating the deep traditions and variations within indigenous Mexico’s fermented beverage culture, from pulque— made from fermented agave sap— to effervescent cacao and corn beverages.
“A lot of people are familiar with distilled spirits out of Mexico and those heritage products or traditional products,” said Kaj Hakkinen, chief innovation officer and co-founder of spirits importer Back Bar Project. “But the fermentation culture in Mexico goes back a lot further. And I think tapping that category, and bringing awareness to the beauty of fermented beverage culture of Mexico was part of the idea for the tephachería.”
Back Bar’s newest addition to its large Mexican spirits portfolio is Tepache Sazón, which launched in the U.S. this month. Bottled into 375 ml amber glass bottles at 7% ABV, the tepache is made in San Pancho on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, not far from the pineapple fields that supply its fermentation tanks. Other versions featuring guava and regional fruits are in progress.
Takes on tepache have sprouted up in the U.S. recently on shelves and in bars, but Sazón appears to be the most straight-up alcoholic commercial version, with distribution in ten states so far. Perhaps the most widely known non-alc tepache is De La Calle, the colorful 12 oz canned line from Los Angeles-based branding and design agency Here Studio, which debuted in 2021. The brand had teased an alcoholic version, but a launch date is yet to be announced. A handful of hard cider companies have also dabbled in canned versions. In on-premise accounts, particularly those backed by Mexican mixologists or offering Mexican menus, DIY tepache has become a canvas for bartenders serving it as a stand-alone refresher or a cocktail mixer.
That’s the origin story for the Tequila Tepache Hi-Ball, which comes from a Los Angeles-based veteran in the import and Mexican beverage space, Gino Pellarin. The 12 oz carbonated canned cocktail spiked with 100% agave tequila was a pandemic-born project that emerged after Pellarin experimented with his version of tepache at a friend’s bar, the renowned Thunderbolt. Its popularity justified moving production to a distillery, and the aluminum can launched with a “natural wine-like” artistic label, which Pellarin later rebranded in an attempt to demonstrate the drink’s ingredients. Illustrations of pineapples and canela, a variety of cinnamon used in Mexico, now dot the label. Under Pellarin’s import portfolio, Rock Steady Spirits, the cocktail is distributed in California at stores like Erewhon and bars across Los Angeles. He’s aiming to distribute in several other states this year too.
Building on Mexican Distillates
Like the importer of Sazón, Pellarin is betting on the rising thirst for sessionable beverages, interest in Mexican culture, and the foodie revolution to bubble up U.S. awareness of tepache.
As importers of mezcal and other craft Mexican distillates, Back Bar Project and Rock Steady Spirits have participated in building inroads in the U.S. market for premium Mexican beverages. The current heightened consumer awareness of tequila and mezcal is projected to boost agave alternatives as well – volumes of raicilla, bacanora, and sotol collectively increased by nearly 40% in the U.S. in 2022, and will continue to climb, according to the IWSR. Mexican beverages are topping other charts too: margarita’s on-premise rein has spilled over to the rise of more agave-inspired and tropical flavored canned cocktails, and Mexican imports like Modelo are bright spots for the beer industry.
“We believe that the trend of mezcal and tequila and these craft Mexican spirits are a great starting point for people who understand and appreciate tepache but can also be ambassadors of tepache,” Hakkinen said.
That’s why Back Bar is leading its route-to-market strategy with on-premise. Not only does the company already have agave spirit customers across the country, but it has benefitted first-hand from the ambassadorship of bartenders who have boosted mezcal’s awareness.
“We really think that Latin inspired and Mexican restaurants are a great place to start with the conversation about tepache, because hopefully they care as much as we do,” he said.
In application, Back Bar is focusing its message on tepache as a stand-alone beverage or as shot and a beer occasion through a Mexican lens whether its a mezcal, tequila, or sotol and a tepache alongside it.
Culture, Premiumization as Differentiation
While alcoholic tepache also fits alongside emerging categories of spiked fermented beverages like hard kombucha, the focus is less on sharing the health benefits of fermentation, and more on the cultural heritage of the beverage to appeal to the culinary-curious.
“I think there’s a huge awareness around Mexican products and interest in Mexican culture, and this is a really beautiful piece of not just beverage culture in Mexico, but gastronomic culture,” Hakkinen said.
For now, other tepache brands like De La Calle are non-competitors, said Hakkinen, since they are more likely to be found in grocery channels rather than liquor. But both importers agree that the more tepache brands highlighting the traditional ingredients and production of the drink, and the culture behind it, will create a rising tide that raises all boats.
“I think the more brands we have out there educating on what tepache is, especially doing it the right way around the cultural aspect of tepache is super important,” Hakkinen said.
In terms of visual identity, both brands are aiming to stand out from other sessionable tropical beverages with more premium-looking packaging. Come July, the Tequila Tepache Hi-Ball will come in glass form, a move that will eliminate past problems with aluminum can leakage and present the beverage as a more quality option on the shelf, according to Pellarin. The Hi-Ball four-packs sell for $35, while Sazón’s four-packs retail at $24.
“I think that it will convey a better perception of value of what’s in there, because I think the canned beverage market is so diluted with just whatever’s cheapest that you can sell to people right now,” he said.
The amber bottle and bright logo design of Sazón is also part of its surprising performance in retail so far, suspects Hakkinen, despite his salesforce’s efforts targeting on-premise.
“I think that’s because it comes in a four-pack, the brand name is bright, it’s tropical, it’s inviting to the eye and people can pick it up and take it somewhere just like they would any RTD,” he said.