Spirited encounters with Peru's national drink

From its colonial origins to its place in contemporary mixology, pisco reveals rich layers of Peruvian history, identity and pride

- Prachi Joshi

Come on, c'mon faster! You need to shake it really hard for the foam to form," says Kini Chacon as I work the cocktail shaker. Chacon is a chef at Rooftop Kitchen, a cooking class in Cusco in south-eastern Peru. Under her supervision, I'm getting a crash course in making Peru's national cocktail, the pisco sour. After nearly a minute of maneuvering the shaker, I pour my cocktail into a glass and take it to the terrace. From the 10th floor of the building in suburban Cusco, I see the historic city spread out below me, its red-roofed houses and soaring church spires flanked by the verdant Andes. I take a sip of my cocktail, which is rather potent for a mid-day drink—but hey, it's five o'clock somewhere, right?

Over my 10-day Peruvian jaunt, I down several pisco sours, including one delicious variation with passion fruit called maracuya sour. More than a century after its creation, the pisco sour has lately caught the attention of mixologists worldwide, including in India where many restaurants and bars join in celebrating National Pisco Day on the first Saturday of February. And it's not just traditional pisco sours; you will find inventive versions with guava, pineapple, etc., but all still celebrating the spirit of pisco.