The Chicha de Año is a drink unique to the north of Peru, most precisely to the town of Magdalena de Cao, province of Ascope, department of La Libertad. It is so unique to this place that the information about it is almost none existent on the internet, so, if you get to visit this little town or you are near here, come to try a sip, or maybe 10, and enjoy its ancestral flavor.
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One of the best ways to do a detour in this direction is to visit the archaeological site of EL BRUJO, where the remains of the LADY OF CAO, the well-preserved mummy of a high-status female leader that ruled this land 300 years A.D. is exhibited, in the same context and site where she was discovered in 2005. Travel tip: if you need more info about this amazing site clickHERE to visit its official website.
By the way, the site is fantastic and is perfectly habilitated to be visited by children, I went with my 2 girls (age 3 and 8) and both of them had so much fun, the tour to the site lasts about 1 hours in a shared tour group.
The last town you will visit before arriving at the Huaca El Brujo (name in Spanish of this archaeological site) is the small, quiet and beautiful Magdalena de Cao, (click here to get exact location), with a population of 3000, is a peaceful site of friendly people that love to talk to strangers. there are many craft-galleries where you can get replicas of ancient pre-Inca vessels, tapestries with local motives and all kinds of souvenirs.
Food is an important part of any trip, so we decided to follow our instincts and go to this little restaurant located on one side of the main square of this town, the name of the site is LA RAMADITA. The list of food looked yummy, so we got northern style Cabrito (lamb) a local delicacy, and the girls chicken Milanese (They still are in that chicken-face) and the last option in the list: Chicha de Año
The food was phenomenal, and the Chicha de Año was indeed a surprise, it taste more like a sweet wine than to Chicha of Jora drink (this is a traditional drink to the highlands and coast of Peru, made of Jora corn, is a young beer. don’t need more than a couple of weeks and is ready to drink, is dense and heavy, very refreshing). when I asked about the preparation the lady of the restaurant said that it takes YEARS to be made, the one I had was 3 years aged. made of corn and peanuts was the surprise of the day.
This was an awesome part of our road trip to Trujillo, unfortunately, we were not able to stay one night here, but it comes highly recommended. I hope you make your way to this destination.
Happy adventures!
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