Whether distilled drinks were produced in Mexico before the Spanish Conquest is unknown. At some point, however, the Spaniards were introduced to native fermented drinks such as pulque made from the maguey plant. Pulque, or octli, is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey plant. Is traditional to central Mexico where it has been produced for millennia. Soon thereafter the conquistadors began experimenting with the agave plant to find a way to make a fermented mash. The result was mezcal.
What is the difference between mezcal and tequila? Tequila is typically produced by steaming the agave inside industrial ovens before being distilled two or three times in copper pots. Mezcal, on the other hand, is cooked inside earthen pits that are lined with lava rocks and filled with wood and charcoal before being distilled in clay pots.
The term mezcal is derived from the Nahuatl word for cooked agave, the paramount plant involved in the spirit’s production. While its tall, spiky green leaves are an iconic emblem of mezcal it’s the pina, the rounded stem that resembles a pineapple, that is used to make the spirit.
Both mezcal and tequila are made from agave so what’s the difference between them? Basically, tequila is a type of mezcal. While mezcal can be produced from up to 50 species of the agave plant, tequila can be made from just one, the agave tequilana Weber, or the weber blue agave.
Additionally, agave that’s earmarked for Tequila is steamed in ovens while the plant is often roasted in underground pits for mezcal which can provide a distinctive smoky note. So tequila is a type of mezcal, but mezcal is not tequila. Got it?
Tequila can only be made from one type of agave Blue Agave or Weber Agave. Unlike tequila, mezcal is a spirit that can be produced from upwards of 28 varieties of the agave plant from many areas of Mexico including Oaxaca to some areas of the states of Guerrero, Durango, San Luis Potosi, and Zacatecas. The flavor profile of mezcal is very different from tequila because it is typically smokier. The above photo is of our amazing daughter who joined us on the "tequila tour."
Agaves or magueys are found mainly in many parts of Mexico and south to the equator though most mezcal is made in Oaxaca. Mezcal can also be made in Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Michoacan, and recently approved Puebla.
I find this comment very true and it makes me laugh: A saying attributed to Oaxaca regarding the drink is "Para todo mal, mezcal, y para todo bien, tambien." ("For everything bad, mezcal, and for everything good, as well.")
On the most basic level tequila tends to have a smooth sweet flavor whereas mezcal is often described as savory and smoky. The smoky quality is usually attributed to the underground ovens used to cook the agave. Today, mezcal is still made from the heart of the agave plant called the pina, or pineapple, in much the same way as it was 200 years ago.
In Mexico Mezcal is generally consumed straight and has a strong smoky flavor. Mezcal is not as popular as tequila which is made specifically from the blue agave in select regions of the country. Mexico is now exporting Mescal to other countries including Japan and the United States and exports are growing.
Agave tequilana, commonly called blue agave or tequila agave, is an agave plant that is an important economic product of Jalisco, Mexico due to its role as the base ingredient of tequila and isn't it beautiful!
Thank you for joining me at Mexico and Beyond: Laura's Photo Journey. I think I might have gotten a little carried away in this posting, but I will blame it on "Libations of the Mexican gods" and I say cheers to that!
Until we meet again, wishing you well wherever your travels and adventures take you. Saludos, Laura
