Type "golden root" into a search bar and you get two plants that have nothing in common except the name. One grows on Arctic sea cliffs and ends up in a capsule. The other is golden root Mexico has known for centuries: chilcuague (Heliopsis longipes), a thin, pungent root from the oak forests of the Sierra Gorda. You feel the Mexican one on your tongue and mouth within a few seconds of tasting it.
What is golden root?
"Golden root" is a common name, and common names travel. Botanists avoid the problem by using Latin, so here are the two plants people mean.
- Rhodiola rosea, a succulent in the stonecrop family (Crassulaceae). It also goes by rose root, roseroot, Arctic root and king's crown.
- Heliopsis longipes, a member of the daisy family (Asteraceae) found only in central Mexico. Locally it is chilcuague, chilcuán, pelitre, raíz de oro or Aztec gold root.
If your search had the word Mexico in it, or you saw a mouth spray or a mention of tingling, you are looking for the second plant.
Chilcuague is the golden root Mexico knows
Heliopsis longipes grows wild in a small pocket of north central Mexico, in the Sierra Gorda and Sierra de Álvarez where the states of Guanajuato, Querétaro and San Luis Potosí meet. A 2008 ethnobotany study in Botanical Sciences (Cilia-López and colleagues) found it in oak and oak-pine forest there and nowhere else in the wild. Only the root is used. It grows as a tangle of fine, thread-like strands.
The name comes from the Nahuatl chilcoatl, from chil (spicy) and coatl (snake). Spicy snake is a fair description of the long, thin root. Raíz de oro, Spanish for golden root, is another common name, and it is why the two plants now share search results.
Families in the Sierra Gorda have used it for generations. Cilia-López's team recorded it ground into salsas as a spice, steeped in mezcal and pulque for flavour, placed on a sore tooth, and soaked in alcohol and rubbed on tired muscles. Chemists who have measured the root by HPLC found 6.9 to 8.5 mg of affinin (also called spilanthol) per gram, along with other alkamides and 28 volatile compounds. Affinin is the compound behind the buzz. Our full guide to chilcuague root, its history and chemistry goes further into all of this.
Why not the dried root?
For most of its history chilcuague was used as a whole root, because that was what people had. Away from the Sierra Gorda, dried root is a harder sell. It arrives as a bag of fibrous strands, you have to chew it before you taste much, and once the bag is open it sits in air and light. An extract keeps the pungent part of the root in liquid form, measured, and sealed until you use it. If you are curious how the ground form compares, we covered it in chilcuague powder and how it stacks up against the extract.
“Definitely energized.”
Golden root vs rhodiola
Rhodiola is a cold-climate plant. It grows wild across Arctic Europe, Asia and North America, on sea cliffs and high mountain slopes, and stands 5 to 40 cm tall with yellow flowers. Alberta Agriculture's grower guide gives the reason for its names: rose root because the cut root smells of rose petals, and golden root because of how highly it was valued. Growers dig the roots once, after four or five years. The dried root is extracted and the extract is usually pressed into a tablet or filled into a capsule (200 mg is a common size), which you swallow with water.
So the two golden roots differ in almost every way that a buyer notices.
- Rhodiola comes from the Arctic and mountains of the north. Chilcuague comes from the Sierra Gorda of central Mexico.
- Rhodiola is swallowed as a capsule. Chilcuague is tasted or sprayed, and you notice it in the mouth.
- Rhodiola has a faint rose smell. Chilcuague is earthy and peppery, then electric.
- Rhodiola is a stonecrop. Chilcuague is in the daisy family, a relative of sunflowers.
Rhodiola has a long history in the north, and plenty of people take it. If you want the plant you can feel within a few seconds, the Mexican golden root is the one to try.
What one spray feels like
For about a second it tastes earthy and a little peppery. Then a bright electric buzz spreads across the tongue and mouth, and your mouth starts to water, fast. After that comes a clean, fresh feeling that stays a while. The first time catches most people off guard. One customer filming their first spray for a reaction video said, "Oh wow, the saliva flow." Another, in a separate reaction video a few minutes after spraying, said, "Definitely energized."
That speed is what people like about it. There is no waiting to find out whether anything happened. You know straight away.
Why Dragon Breath is a spray
Dragon Breath is chilcuague root extract in a 50 ml mouth spray. The Mara team harvests wild root from growth zones it selects with the help of local elders in central Mexico. The root is dual-extracted in organic solutions, and the extract is sealed in Miron violet glass, which keeps light off the liquid and adds a lot of longevity to its quality and potency. Dark amber glass is a step in the right direction. Dark Miron glass is the gold standard, and it is what Mara uses.
A spray also fixes the problems with loose root and powder. Nothing to chew, no fibres stuck in your teeth, and no open bag losing its bite to air and light in a cupboard. The bottle lives in your pocket. A few sprays is all it takes, and each one gives the same dose, with more than 250 sprays per bottle.
Dragon Breath – Chilcuague Extract
50 ml mouth spray. Wild-harvested chilcuague root, dual-extracted. 250+ sprays.
Add to bagWhere it fits in a day
Start with one spray to learn the feeling, then go up to five once you know it. People reach for it after a coffee, in the car before a meeting, at the desk mid-afternoon, or before training when they want something sharp in the mouth. It is vegan, gluten free, sugar free and non-GMO. Mitchell S., a verified buyer, summed it up in three words: "Epic. Must buy".
Plenty of buyers start with the name, read about raíz de oro, and want to know what the fuss is about. A pocket spray is the easiest way to find out.
Questions people ask about golden root
Does golden root work?
With the Mexican golden root you can judge for yourself in seconds, because the buzz on the tongue and mouth and the rush of saliva arrive almost at once. Researchers have measured 6.9 to 8.5 mg of affinin, the compound behind that feeling, in each gram of root.
Is chilcuague golden root the same as rhodiola?
No. Chilcuague is Heliopsis longipes, a daisy-family root from central Mexico. Rhodiola is Rhodiola rosea, a stonecrop from the Arctic and northern mountains, and the two only share a nickname.
What does raíz de oro mean?
It is Spanish for golden root. In the Sierra Gorda the root is more often called chilcuague, from the Nahuatl for spicy snake.
How many sprays of Dragon Breath should I start with?
One. Once you know the feeling, the product page suggests up to five.
