Marisa Chafetz / Supercall
Marisa Chafetz / Supercall

Pisco 101

Pisco is often called brandy’s South American cousin. While familiar European brandies like Cognac do share a fruity base with pisco, a grape-based spirit that hails from Peru and Chile, there’s a lot more to pisco than geography and grapes (although both are very important to understanding the spirit). With all sorts of bright, grassy, citrusy flavors that you could never get from a well aged French brandy, pisco has an allure all of its own and works in cocktails and settings where other brandies would flop fantastically. With more and more brands slowly coming to the U.S., there’s never been a better time to learn about pisco.

The History of Pisco

Spanish conquistadors brought European grapes to South America in the mid-16th century to supply demand from missionaries and other colonizers. The grapes took well to the climates in Peru and Chile, and the vineyards quickly spread. Eventually South American grape growers ended up with a surplus of fruit, not least because the Spanish crown began limiting their wine exports. And eventually Spaniards and locals alike began distilling their extra wine into aguardiente early in the 17th century. The spirit would eventually come to be called pisco, either after a Peruvian port where the liquor was distributed or after one of several Quechua words.

By the mid-1800s, pisco found its way to America, hitching a ride on trading vessels climbing up the Pacific coast from Peru to San Francisco, where it made quite a splash in a town excited by the ongoing gold rush. The spirit came with a signature cocktail, the Pisco Sour, described in Peru as early as 1903 in the Nuevo Manual de Cocina a la Criolla—though many cocktail historians give credit to American bartender Victor Vaughen Morris who created a version of the drink in the 1920s at Morris’ Bar in Lima. But San Franciscans soon made pisco their own with the Pisco Punch, which exploded from the Bank Exchange Saloon in 1893.

Like many spirits, pisco was devastated by Prohibition, and would only begin to rebuild its reputation during the West Coast’s cocktail revival in the 1990s.

Where Is Pisco Made?

Peruvian pisco is made in five D.O. (Denomination of Origin) regions—Lima, Ica, Arequipa, Moquegua and Tacna—which lie in the valleys to the south and in the middle of the country, where the humidity is high from proximity to the ocean. Meanwhile Chilean pisco is made in two protected regions—Atacama and Coquimbo.

Marisa Chafetz / Supercall

How Is Pisco Made?

A number of regulations differentiate piscos from Chile and Peru, though there is some overlap.

In Peru: Eight types of grapes can be used to distill pisco: aromatic varieties Italia, Torontel, Moscatel and Albilla, and non-aromatic varieties Quebranta, Negra Criolla, Mollar and Uvina. These grapes are made into three main styles: pisco puro (made from one grape variety), pisco acholado (a blend of grapes, fermented grapes or distillations), and pisco mosto verde (distilled from grape must that has not fully fermented). All styles must be distilled to proof (38 to 48-percent ABV) in copper pot stills before resting for at least three months in neutral containers like glass or steel (never wood). No additional ingredients may be added.

In Chile: The regulations in Chile are more relaxed. 13 varieties are available to Chilean pisco makers: five commonly used varieties—Moscatel Rosado, Moscatel de Austria, Muscat d’Alexandrie, Pedro Jimenez and Torontel—and eight less common varieties—Moscatel Negra, Moscatel Amarilla, Moscatel Blanca, Muscat de Frontignan, Muscat Hamburg, Muscat Orange, Moscato de Canelli and Chasselas Musque Vrai. Those grapes can be distilled multiple times on a column or copper pot still, and the pisco can be distilled to a higher proof and then watered down. Chilean pisco can also be aged in wood, like the brandies of Europe.

Chasselas Musque Vrai, Moscatel Amarilla, Moscatel Blanca Temprana, Moscatel de Alejandría or Italia, Moscatel de Austria, Moscatel de Frontignan, Moscatel de Hamburgo, Moscatel Negra, Moscatel Rosada or Pastilla, Moscato de Canelli, Muscat Orange, Pedro Jiménez and Torontel.

Types of Pisco

Again, there is some overlap in styles between the two pisco-producing nations. The first four types listed here generally apply to pisco from both countries, but the last four apply only to Chile.

Puro: Pisco made from one variety of grape, technically restricted to the non-aromatic varieties, but often used to refer to aromatic and non-aromatic piscos alike.

Aromaticas: Pisco made from one variety of aromatic grapes, though often simply referred to as puro.

Acholado: Pisco made from a blend of grapes, fermented grapes or grape distillates.

Mosto verde: Pisco distilled from grape must, not fully fermented grapes, giving the resulting pisco a slightly sweet taste.

Pisco Corriente o Tradicional: Chilean pisco bottled at 30-35 percent ABV.

Pisco Especial: Chilean pisco bottled at 35-40 percent ABV.

Pisco Reservado: Chilean pisco bottled at 43 percent ABV.

Gran Pisco: Chilean pisco bottled above 43 percent ABV.

How Do I Drink Pisco Straight?

In areas like Ica, pisco is commonly consumed straight. Served as a bajativo, or digestif, it’s sipped slowly from a small lowball or shot glass.

Notable Pisco Cocktails

Pisco Punch: The drink that kicked off American obsession with pisco was popularized at San Francisco’s Bank Exchange Billiard Saloon in the 1890s (some iteration was likely previously imbibed on the steamers carrying pisco up from South America). While the original version was rumored to be made with cocaine, we think our lemony, pineapple-tinged version is pretty good even without the narcotic.

Pisco Sour: In Peru, they prefer their pisco shaken with citrus and egg white in this frothy concoction, usually decorated with bitters dashed into the foam. To make the drink legit, you’ll need real Peruvian limón and authentic Peruvian Chuncho Bitters.

Piscola: A Chilean favorite, the Piscola is mixed with pisco and Coca-Cola, with a lime garnish. Think of it as a Chilean Cuba Libre.

Pisco in Culture

  • Ask someone on the streets of Lima about pisco, and they’re likely to respond with one name: Johnny Schuler. The popular restaurateur-turned-pisco distiller is the master distiller of popular brand Pisco Portón. But he has also done much to popularize high-quality, craft pisco in recent years on his weekly television show Por Las Rutas del Pisco and in his two books on the spirit, Pasión por el Pisco and Rutas y Sabores. Schuler was even awarded the Peruvian Congressional Medal of Honor in 2007 for his efforts.
  • After sampling the Pisco Punch at the Bank Exchange Saloon, Rudyard Kipling immortalized the drink in From Sea to Sea, describing it as, “compounded of the shavings of cherub's wings, the glory of a tropical dawn, the red clouds of sunset and the fragments of lost epics by dead masters.”
  • Both Peru and Chile claim the Pisco Sour as their national drink. Peruvians even celebrate a yearly public holiday dedicated to the drink on the first Saturday of February.