Xufatopía brings back the traditional Spanish drink ‘horchata’ as a drink that can be enjoyed at home, but remains just as fresh and delicious. Horchata is typically made from ground rice, water, and sweeteners like sugar or condensed milk, often including flavours such as cinnamon, vanilla, or nuts.
The Valencian company Panach values the flavour of fresh horchata and combines innovation in production and packaging. With a month-long shelf life, their product still retains its authentic qualities with the ancestral recipe. Xufatopía horchata can be transported away from home, be it for a picnic at the beach or in a park thanks to the easily transportable containers.
Panach has invested in innovation, conducting multiple investigations to find the perfect packaging method for its product. According to José Ramón Panach, the second-generation horchata maker, they have “covered a space that people were demanding. There has been an excess of packaged horchata that, for those who recognise and appreciate its flavour, did not like it”. That is why Panach discovered that vacuum packaging without oxygen could allow them to extend the expiration date. “The horchata goes from keeping for five days to a whole month, as long as the cold chain is not broken,” Panach explains.
The horchata has the added value of being a gluten-free, lactose-free and 100% vegetable-based, something that consumers value highly, making for a healthy, wholesome and local drink. It also can incorporate flavours like strawberry or chocolate. Previously limited to placing an ice cream scoop on top of the drink, this customisation was unknown in packaged horchata. However, a new method has been discovered, resulting in horchata flavours such as turmeric or coffee.
“We are a purebred horchatería, it’s what we have lived since we were children,” comments Panach. His father, José Panach Riera, decided in 1970 to build the first machine to harvest tiger nuts. Now, the establishment is about to celebrate its 52nd anniversary! It was founded by José Ramón Panach, with his mother and a horchatería worker in Alboraia in the 1970s. In 2013, the first packaged horchata appeared; three years later, bottled fresh horchata arrived. They decided to call it Xufatopía By Panach, a fun and creative brand, that is committed to innovation but never renounces tradition.
Report by Emily Bray
Article copyright ‘24/7 Valencia’
Xufatopía by Panach
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