Nopales Aguamiel: Making Prickly Pear Mead in Death Valley

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This article originally appeared in the March/April 2026 issue of Zymurgy Magazine

By Art Fitzsimmons

The indigenous peoples of one of the hottest regions in North America have consumed and fermented whatever fruit the inhospitable climate allowed. Art Fitzsimmons unveils the present-day fermenting spirit of the region by brewing a prickly pear mead at a local campsite.

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