Published by: Gourmet Sleuth Last Updated: 08/16/2013
Corn was very important to the Inca culture and was used as food as well as the "wine" of the ancients. Chicha, “corn beer” was a very important part of any Inca feast. The brewing of the corn beer was considered such a sacred process that it was produced by “virgin priestesses”. To this day, women are the "brewers" in the culture.
On a nutritional note, the process of fermenting the corn made it more digestible and thus provided more nutritious "drink". The end result is similar to how the Aztecs soaked corn in wood ash (Cal) which rendered it easier to grind and more nutritious as well.