Fruits of the Desert In the desert town of Real de Catorce, Mexico, the pandemic has highlighted an urgent need for food sovereignty. Natalia Torres Garzón Photographs by Antonio Cascio
February 8, 2021
In the town of Real de Catorce, in the high mountains of the Mexican state of San Luis Potosi, Alfonso García gets up before sunrise to collect aguamiel, the juice from the maguey, or agave. He extracts the juice by digging a hole in the heart of the plant. The liquid that accumulates in the hole throughout the day can be collected every 12 hours. García explains that he will return the next evening, at sunset, to collect more aguamiel, which can be drunk fresh or fermented into a drink called pulque, an alcoholic beverage that many people call the drink of the gods.