In 1920s Puebla, the cantinas of the Barrio del Artista bustled with artists and intellectuals who gathered to exchange ideas over original homemade liqueurs known as menjurjes. One especially popular menjurje was handcrafted from the ancho chile. We pay homage to those original recipes with Ancho Reyes Original and Ancho Reyes Verde – authentic Mexican liqueurs steeped in the tradition of Puebla.
• Our poblano chiles are cultivated in the volcano-enriched soils of Puebla. After harvest, the soil is rested for three years before it again grows chiles.
• One by one, each poblano chile is individually hand-selected for quality. For Ancho Reyes Original, the chiles are harvested later, once they’ve matured and turned red.
• For Ancho Reyes Original, chiles are sun-dried for between 15 to 20 days to become ancho chiles. The dried chiles develop a rich, smoky, and fiery flavor.
• The ancho chiles used in Ancho Reyes Original are scissor-sliced by hand, a painstaking, time-consuming process that ensures that we use only the finest chiles.
• For half of a year, the chiles soak in a stepped process, macerating in small vats of neutral cane spirit from Veracruz, Mexico.
• Imbued with chile flavor, the resulting liquid is then hand-blended by our Maestra Maceradora – or Master Blender, to maintain consistent flavor and spice.