Agwa de Bolivia: Liqueur Made from Coca Leaves?

We've been seeing some buzz (literally) about this liqueur, Agwa de Bolivia. It's made from the same stuff as cocaine! What?

This strange concoction is made from coca leaves, which is the same thing that cocaine is made out of. So of course the press releases for this green liqueur play up that cocaine connection quite a lot. But it definitely doesn't have the same potent effect as its narcotic sibling. Instead this liqueur includes caffeine, gingseng, and guarana for a jittery caffeinated kick to balance out the effects of the alcohol.

This sounds like quite a kick of a liquor; according to a review at Liquor Snob it is not great for drinking straight, but it does have a lot of herbal and spice notes that make it a great cocktail mixer.

• Read the review: Agwa de Bolivia Review at Liquor Snob

Have you tried this bright green stuff?

(Images: Agwa de Bolivia)

Comments (10)

Coca tea is made from the leaves too and used in the Andes for many things, one is dealing with altitude. Its legal in many parts there and is as common as coffee.

I've had that stuff... oddly enough, 4 shots of it at 8am with my neighbors during a puppy playdate. It was tasty and I definitely felt more buzzed than drunk.

We love the coca tea in our house as a natural way to cure a headache.

In Peru we saw tons of people chewing on a wad of the leaves as they ran up and down the Andes...can't say we enjoyed that...but gave it a go while there.

What would you use as a mixer? Could you make something akin to a mojito with it?

Living in Lima, Peru, we have coca tea frequently with breakfast, and also when I have a headache. You can buy it at any grocery store or market. Not being much of a drinker, I don't know how much I'd go for this liqueur, though. It's sold in the US?

I love coca tea so this piques my interest!

Wow this is intersting. I love Coca tea and even loved chewing the leaves while i hiked the Andes where I suffered no altitude sickness!

Will definitely look out for this but am curious as to how I can use it in a cocktail...

saer
http://cravenmaven.wordpress.com

I think it takes something like a ton of coca leaves to make an ounce of cocaine.

Is a tobacco-infused liquor next?

i lived in peru for a little bit. Stayed in cuzco and lima while I was there and cocoa is not at all considered remotely the same as cocaine.

There the people use it in everything, tea, breads, candy. When I came back to the states I brought back cocoa leaves and cocoa candy. Its completely legal and not at all dangerous. You would have to consume a LOT of cocoa to get a high.

I'm glad to see everyone commenting on the safety of coca leaves-- saying that cocaine is made of coca leaves is technically true, but the drug is so far refined that it really has very little to do with the original plant. Thinking otherwise has lead to the demonization of an important medicinal and cultural product.

if you're planning on taking a drug test I would advise against drinking any coca tea, it will show up as cocaine.