If you’ve ever sipped on ponche during the holiday season in Mexico, you might have assumed this charmer is a leftover from Spain’s colonial rule. But you’d be wrong. Ponche, despite its Latino reputation, is actually an import from … India. Si, that’s right — Abuela’s beloved holiday punch has roots in a land far away. Ponche traveled across the world before landing in your hands. It’s the Mexican winter drink with a punch, and an Indian passport.
From India to Mexico
The story begins centuries ago, when the drink we now call ponche was born in India. Back then, it wasn’t called ponche — it was called “paantsch,” a Hindi word meaning “five.” Why five? Because the original recipe had five key ingredients: alcohol, lemon, sugar, water, and spices. The British loved it so much that they brought it back to Europe, and called it “punch.”
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“From the 1630s it spread all over the world over the next twenty years,” Drink Historian and Author of the book Punch, David Wondrich, tells Epicurious, “which is pretty quick considering it took eight months to sail back to Europe.”
The drink eventually made its way to the Americas via the Spanish colonizers. And, by the time it landed in Mexico, the locals added more fruit and sugar.
Ponche: Mexico’s Fruit Salad in a Cup
Unlike a cool summer punch, the Mexican ponche is served warm, made of a blend of water, sugar, and fruit like tamarind, guava, apples, tejocotes (tiny crabapples), and hibiscus. It’s essentially the mulled wine of the tropics, except with more actual chunks of food. Some families add alcohol, like tequila, as well.
“On Christmas Eve my Tias get wasted on ponche with tequila mixed into it,” katiekakes562 jokes on a Reddit thread about the traditional drink.
A Holiday Tradition That Packs a Punch
Today, ponche is the star of every Mexican holiday gathering, often served from massive pots. It’s festive and smells so good that it could double as a Yankee Candle.
“A pot of ponche fills the whole house with the smell of cooked fruit, such as guavas, apples, tejocotes, raisins, and prunes, as well as the warm scent of cinnamon,” atlas obscura explains. “These ingredients bob in a sweet, tangy mixture of water, tamarind paste, a whole cone of raw cane sugar (piloncillo), and, often, dried hibiscus flowers (jamaica).”
So, next time you enjoy ponche, think about its global journey — from Indian paantsch to colonial punch, to the warm fruity brew that warms Mexican hearts. You’re sipping on history, culture, and a little bit of tequila (if you’re lucky).
