This is the fifth and final installment in a series of articles examining the prehistoric origins of fermented agave beverages in the Mesoamerican culture area. To get up to speed, see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, & Part 4. In this installment we discuss a hypothesis and an experiment testing the possibility of pre-Hispanic distillation. To do so, we first introduce the region and the archaeological evidence supporting the hypothesis. We secondly share the methods and results of the experiment. Finally we conclude the series of articles and discuss directions for future research.
Capacha culture phase pottery vessels: Primitive distillation devices?
The Capacha culture phase of the Early Formative Period (1500-1000 BCE) in West Mexico (Jalisco and Colima) is characterized in part by a particular set of pottery designs, including double-level trifid and bifid "stirrup" pots and so-called gourd-shaped pots, some found with miniature ollas associated with or placed inside (Kelly 1980). An intriguing hypothesis was put forward by the scholar Joseph Needham: that these pots, based upon their similarity to a simple Mongolian distilling apparatus for use in preparing spirits of rice and a theory of transport across the Pacific Ocean from Asia to Mesoamerica at some unknown point in prehistory, may provide early evidence of distillation in Mesoamerica (Needham and Lu 1985). This theory was actually discredited before its time by previous authors who showed that Filipino sailors abandoned their posts on Manila galleons in the 17th century, went ashore in Nayarit, and brought these distillation methods (or methods and apparatus very similar!) with them to their new homes amongst the Huicholes, Tarahumar, and Tarascans of West Mexico (Bruman 1944). Here we will set aside the suggestion of transpacific technology transmission and focus on the archaeological evidence of the pots and associated artifacts alone.
Archaeological Evidence: The Study Region
Archaeological evidence of these peculiar ceramics at funerary context sites was reported by Isabel Kelly in 1980 and later by Zizumbo-Villarreal and his colleagues in the Colima Valley north of the city of Colima, in the foothills south of the Colima Volcanoes, between the Armería-Ayuquila-Tuxcacuezco and Tuxpan-Naranjo-Coahuayana river systems. The area is between 500-600 meters above sea level, and has a warm sub-humid climate with an average annual temperature of 24.6 degrees C. The material studied is from sites near the town of Comala and the La Capacha hacienda. Looting had previously occurred at the sites studied by both research groups, including those where the key materials were found (Kelly 1980, Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009b).
Archaeological Evidence: Material Findings
Zizumbo-Villarreal and his colleagues have found evidence of the use of agave for fiber, food, and as a raw material for fermented beverages. Some of this evidence consisted of pottery vessels depicting agave motifs in the mortuary context and of agave heart roasting pits associated with residential and ceremonial contexts from the Late Classic to Post Classic Phases (Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009b).
Archaeological Evidence: Experimental Methods to Test a Theory of Ancient Distillation
Separately, these same researchers undertook to test the hypothesis put forth by Needham that the earlier Capacha cultural phase (1500-1000 BCE) pottery found in this region may have represented primitive distillation devices. These vessels, of trifid and gourd-shaped double-level design, reported upon by Kelly, were found in a number of heavily looted, but partially intact funerary sites in the area (Kelly 1980). As Kelly found at least one of these with a miniature olla (simple hemispherical pot of the type usually used for cooking beans) placed inside the upper level of the pot (Kelly 1980), Needham reasoned that this could be a still with an internal receiver, similar to the Mongol type used by the Huichol (Needham and Lu 1985)and discussed above.
To test the hypothesis, the researchers first crafted exact replicas of one gourd-shaped and one trifid double-level vessel using local materials and methods believed to be available to artisans of the period and locale, including a hemispheric bowl (Kelly 1980)and a portion of gourd pericarp used as condensers and a small earthenware cup and a similar-sized gourd pericarp vessel used as receivers. Four different methods (GSC, GSG, TSC, TSG, slideshow pictures) were chosen based upon their plausibility and on culturally significant and available materials of the period and locale. All four methods for testing, each repeated 5 times, generally shared the following characteristics:
- The vessel itself was filled with 1L of fermented agave juice provided by a local master mescal producer and heated on a gas stove to control for variability in the heating process. After heating the liquid to the evaporation point, heat was reduced to low for two hours, then heating was stopped.
- A condenser filled with cold water, in the form of either a gourd pericarp or an earthenware bowl, was used to cover the opening of the main vessel. Clay was used to completely seal the interface between the main vessel and the upper bowl or gourd and thereby prevent the escape of any vapor.
- An internal “receiver” placed inside the upper level of the main vessel to catch the dripping condensate from the apex at the bottom of the condenser, which resulted from the steam rising from the boiling agave ferment in the lower level and coming in contact with the cooler surface of the condenser.
- The condensate received after the two hours of heating was analyzed for its volume and its distilled ethanol content.
- An additional trial, repeating each of the four testing methods, was also performed, but with a stone firepit to simulate ancient distillation methods, including the potential for uneven cooking.
Results
Upon analysis, the 20 controlled heating replications produced an average of 49.5 mL (range: 16-85 mL) of distillate, with an average concentration of 20.5% (range: 12-32%) alcohol. The methods using the stone firepit produced a range of 44-112 mL of distillate at 12-32% alcohol. The method producing the highest percent alcohol was that using the trifid-shape vessel with a gourd condenser and receiver (TSG, slideshow pictures).
Discussion & Conclusion
In spite of the above caveats, the evidence provided by this experimental archaeology study of Capacha trifid and gourd vessel use seems to indicate that the knowledge of and tools for distillation of some form of fermented agave juice may have been available to ancient Mesoamericans using processes available to them as early as the Early Formative period (1500-1000 BCE ). However, even if it was available, the use of distillation does not appear to have been culturally significant across a large culture area – such as that of the Aztecs or Tarascans – in the pre-Hispanic context, as there is currently no evidence for its widespread use, although looting could be responsible for this dearth of evidence. Distillation using either the Filipino still described by Bruman (Bruman 1944)or the Spanish still of Arabic origin appears to have quickly and enthusiastically been adopted wherever it was introduced after contact (Taylor 1979). The fact that the distillation process produces a much higher percent alcohol than fermentation alone, up to 32% using Capacha trifid vessels with gourd receivers (Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009a), and accounts in the codices and elsewhere of the level to which more modestly alcoholic pulque was greatly enjoyed at feasts (Taylor 1979, Goncalves de Lima 1956)it is difficult to imagine the Aztecs or other large civilizations discovering distillation and then not using it.
The latest addition to this body of research from Zizumbo-Villarreal and colleagues seems to agree with my main conclusion above, indicating that distillation was “a real possibility” in the Valley of Colima in the Early Formative period given that they were able to make up to 32% ethyl alcohol from agave juice using exact replicas of two types of Capacha-style pots in from this era (Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009a). They do not address what which type of agave beverage might have been used. They do state that, if used, distillation would have provided a beverage that of “a prestigious product for ceremonial purposes with high social and cultural relevance.” (Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009a). On the superficial face of this point we disagree, due to lack of other supporting evidence and the reasons noted above. Then again, this may be seen as agreement with my general conclusion that, if known widely, distillation would surely be seen as superior to fermentation alone. The authors conclude with the statement that the tradition of distillation of agave spirits in the region “could be thousands of years old” (Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009a).
Directions for Future Work
A key direction for future work in this area will be to analyze the interior surfaces of Capacha-phase trifid and gourd pottery for the presence of calcium oxalate crystals or other forms of agave residues, which would at least support hypotheses of their use in heating agave beverages. Other evidence identifying the heating and storage of alcoholic beverages includes “acid-etching” of the interior surfaces of this or other pottery. Additionally, the finding of more assembled “Capacha-phase stills”, including a trifid or gourd pot in close association with a miniature olla, would provide stronger evidence that these two vessels may have been used in conjunction for either the purpose of steaming food or of distillation of alcohol. However, given that the types of vessels described are in high demand on the black market and the widespread looting in the region in general (Kelly 1980, Zizumbo-Villarreal et al. 2009b), it may be a very long time until an assembled still of this type is described in an academic journal.
Of course it must be noted that, just because the researchers could achieve a reasonable distillate of fermented agave beverage does not mean that ancient peoples actually did so. Nonetheless, it’s clear from this experiment that pre-Hispanic peoples such as the Aztecs, Tarascans, Zapotec, and others unequivocally had the tools and therefore the ability to distill – exciting stuff! A quick note on references: To read the source material directly, just search for the article title in Google Scholar - this works best if you're logged into your local university's library network as it may give you more full-text access to articles. If you’d like to be notified when a new article is posted, just hit the “Subscribe” button at the top of this article near to the picture of yours truly.
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