The traditional Mexican drink Mezcal is presumably more than 10,000 years old! Due to different preparation methods, as well as the specific agave species, the aroma and taste can vary individually. Since Mezcal is still predominantly produced by hand in the agaves' countries of origin, it is considered particularly high-quality and valuable. For Mezcal, the pinecone or pineapple-like core of the usually ripe agaves is used. This has been referred to by locals since ancient times as Piña (Spanish for pineapple) or the heart of the agave.
Among the various types of agave, there are some special species, some of which still grow wild and are used for the most exquisite Mezcals. For example, Agave potatorum forms the basis for our popular
Tobala. The semi-wild Agave karwinski latrans, in turn, is used for the production of our
Mezcal Coyote.
From boiling the cores to finished Mezcal
The freshly harvested cores, stripped of their leaves, are cooked for 3 to 5 days in a large earthen oven equipped with hot stones. In this oven, the agave cores are simply placed on the heated stones and carefully covered. Even at this stage, the firewood used develops a pleasant smoky aroma, which gradually permeates the agave hearts during the long cooking process.
After a resting period of about a week, the agave cores are crushed, which is still done by hand in the villages or in special stone mills pulled by horses. Next, the crushed cores undergo careful fermentation or natural yeast. This takes place in special wooden containers, in which crushed sugarcane, as well as specific yeasts and bacteria, support the fermentation. This mixture of agaves, sugarcane, and microorganisms ferments for several weeks in these airtight containers.
Industrially produced Mezcal also undergoes this fermentation process. However, this takes place in metal containers and with the aid of individual cultured yeasts. This has the advantage that fermentation starts faster and the risk of faulty fermentation is minimized. However, all of this comes at the expense of the unique taste and quality of the fermented juice. Industrial Mezcal cannot, therefore, be compared to traditionally produced Mezcal.
After fermentation is complete, the Mezcal must be filtered and usually distilled twice. Only through the second distillation process is a rather high alcohol content of up to 50% achieved. If necessary, this high-proof Mezcal is then diluted with water.
By the way:
Tequila is produced – with a few differences – in almost the same way as Mezcal, with one significant exception: while various agave species can be used for Mezcal production, only one agave species, namely Agave tequilana, is used for Tequila.
Unique: The Heart of the Blue Agave
It's actually quite simple: every Tequila is, in principle, also a Mezcal, but not every Mezcal is also a Tequila. If you want to buy a Mezcal, you have a wider range of agave aromas available than when buying a Tequila. The latter, however – assuming high quality – is unique in taste.
It is precisely the wide range of possible agave species that makes each Mezcal a unique taste experience. Each species has its individual aroma, which it imparts to the fermenting agave juice. Only the heart of the blue agave is used for Tequila, giving it its very special, inimitable aroma.
Another difference between these two trendy Mexican spirits concerns their
origin:
While Mezcal is often produced and distributed around the city or region of Oaxaca, it can fundamentally be produced in all states of Mexico. Here, Tequila from the Agave tequilana plant again plays a special role. Because it may only be produced in the state of Jalisco, in the region around the city of Tequila of the same name.
The Origin of Mezcal and Tequila
The Agave tequilana plant originated in Mexico, where agaves already formed the basis of an intoxicating beverage – the legendary Pulque – in the Aztec Empire. Later, with the arrival of the Spanish, the technical know-how of distillation came to Mexico. Thus, the once rather acidic fermented beverage became an aromatic Mezcal and thus the first distilled spirit in all of America.
This trendy drink was given the name Mezcal because the indigenous people, who previously produced the legendary fermented drink there, called it that. They often referred to the heart of the agave with the indigenous term "
Mezcal". Translated, this now world-renowned name simply means "cooked agave".
It wasn't long before a special type of agave – the Agave tequilana plant – attracted attention with its unique aroma. Although it no longer only grows in the immediate vicinity of the later small town of Tequila, these plants, also known as Blue Weber agaves, were already very common there for a long time. The heart of the blue agave was even considered a culinary delicacy there. Therefore, even today, a genuine Tequila must come from this region.
What is the Blue Agave?
Botanically speaking, the Blue Weber Agave, or Agave tequilana, with its fleshy leaves, belongs to the succulents. This is because the agave stores water for dry periods in these leaves, which narrow towards the top.
The leaves of the blue agave, which can be up to 120 centimeters long and have a terminal spine, as well as its flowers, have a beautiful blue-green coloration. These plants owe their name "Blue Agave" to this striking coloration. Only once in their life – namely shortly before the plants die – do the impressive flowers of this Blue Agave appear.
The Cultivation of the Blue Weber Agave
Today's Blue Weber agaves, used for Tequila, are grown in monocultures, while predominantly wild-growing and semi-wild agave species are used for other Mezcal types.
However, cultivation in monocultures unfortunately also brings some disadvantages. While plants growing in a mixed culture support each other in the fight against pests and are generally less sensitive to weather, agaves from a monoculture are considered very susceptible. The wild, intermingling cultures from mixed cultivation, which are used for various
Mezcal varieties, benefit from their genetic diversity. The
Tequila made from the delicate Blue Weber agaves is therefore a very special Mezcal in every respect.
