TEQUILA

• Believed to be the first spirit made in the Americas

• Jalisco town of tequila
• National drink of Mexico
• Legally made in and around the town of Tequila
• Made from a cactus: agave tequilana weber / azul
(also known as the Blue Agave / Century Plant / American Aloe / Mezcal)

HARVESTING

• Looks like pineapple, locals call pina.

• Harvested by jimadors.

• The spiky leaves are removed to get to the heart of the fruit known as pina.
• It weighs 40-70 pounds.

MANUFACTURING PROCESS

The plant takes about 10-12 years to mature


The ‘pineapple’ is split and oven-steamed
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Sweet sap (aguamiel) is extracted and yeast is added

 Fermentation takes about 2½ days
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Distilled twice in pot still
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Diluted with distilled water
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• Silver (unaged ones are bottled immediately)
• Aged ones take on a golden hue

TEQUILA PRODUCTION

• Harvesting

The planting, tending and harvesting of the agave plant remains a manual effort that
relies on centuries-old know how that has been passed down from generation to
generation. The plants grow in neat rows for six to ten years and are meticulously
tended until they are ripe and ready to harvest.
The harvester, or “Jimador” removes the agave leaves with a sharp curved tool called a
Coa. He trims the 200 plus leaves that protect the heart or piña of the agave until the
whole heart is extracted from the ground. Only the heart, or “piña,” of the agave plant is
used to make tequila. Mature piñas weigh in between a hefty eighty and three hundred
pounds; however, the size of the agave heart is not nearly as important as its sugar
content.

• Cooking

During this step, steam injection within traditional brick ovens or stainless-steel
autoclaves is used to activate a chemical process within the piña that converts
complex carbohydrates into simple fermentable sugars. Cooking also softens the
piña, making the process of sugar extraction easier.
• Extraction

Once cooked, the agave heads are transported to a milling area for sugar
extraction. The cooked piñas are crushed in order to release the juice, or
“aguamiel,” that will be fermented. The traditional method is to crush the piñas
with a “tahona,” a giant grinding wheel operated by mules, oxen or tractors
within a circular pit. Modern distilleries now use a mechanical crusher to
separate the fiber from the juices. Once the piñas are minced they are washed
with water and strained to remove the juices.

• Fermentation

During the fermentation process the sugars are transformed into alcohol within
large wooden vats or stainless-steel tanks. Yeast may be added to accelerate and
control the fermentation. Traditionally, the yeast that grows naturally on the
agave leaves is used; however, today many distilleries use a cultivated form of
wild yeast. Fermentation typically takes seven to twelve days, depending on the
method used.
 • Distillation

The next step of creating tequila is distillation, in which ferments are separated by heat
and steam pressure within stainless steel pot stills or distillation towers. While some
tequilas are distilled three times, the majority are only distilled twice. The first
distillation, also known as “deztrozamiento” or “smashing,” takes a couple hours and
yields a liquid with an alcohol level of about 20% known as “ordinario.” The second
distillation, known as “rectification,” takes three to four hours and yields a liquid with an
alcohol level near 55%. After the second distillation the tequila is considered silver, or
“blanco,” tequila.

• Aging

Almost all containers used in tequila aging are French or American white oak
barrels that have previously been used to age bourbon. Reposados are aged
between two and twelve months, Añejos are aged between one and three years
and Extra Añejos are aged for over three years. The longer the tequila ages, the
more color and tannins the final product will have. The condition of the barrels
(such as their age, previous use and if their interiors have been burnt or toasted)
will also affect the tequila’s taste.
 • Bottling

Like champagne, tequila is assigned an Appellation of Origin status, which limits

production to five Mexican states: Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, and
Tamaulipas. The state of Jalisco is very proud to be the centre of Tequila
production. It is the only state that as a whole has the status of Appellation of
Origin. It is considered the place where tequila was first made and where the
standards are defined. The other states are only permitted to grow Blue Agave
in small and defined regions. All 100% agave tequilas must be bottled in the
designated Mexican regions and must bear on their labels “Hecho en Mexico /
Made in Mexico.” Non-100% agave tequila, or “mixtos,” can be sold and bottled
anywhere throughout the world.

Composition

• By law Minimum 51% blue agave

• TWO TYPES

• Mixto – It is tequila distilled from wash obtained from a minimum of 51% of

agave tequilana sugar and maximum of 49% of other sugar.
• 100% Agave – This tequila has 100% distillate from agave tequila weber.

CATEGORIES

• JOVEN ABOGADO – ‘Young and Adulterated’. Not aged, Not from 100% agave.
Example of Mixto.
• BLANCO (Plata/Silver) – Maximum aging 2 months. Generally un-aged.
• REPOSADO (Rested/Aged) – Rested for a period of two months to one year.
 • ANEJO (Aged) – Aged for minimum of one year but less than three years.
• EXTRA ANEJO (Extra Aged) – Aged minimum three years in oak casks.
• ORO (Gold) – It is a blend of plata with reposado. Often caramel is added.

BRAND NAMES

• JOSE CUERVO

• SAUZA
• SAUZA ESPECIAL
• PEPE LOPEZ
• ARANDAS
• 1800

• ESPOLON
• AZTECA
• PARTIDA
• EL TOSORO DON FELIPE
• MONTEZUMA
 • CAMINO

POPULAR TEQUILA COCKTAILS

• LONG ISLAND ICE TEA

• TEQUILA SUNRISE
• TEQUILA CRUDA

Please Note: PULQUE

Pulque is not technically related to tequila or mezcal. Nor is it a byproduct

of making tequila or mezcal. Pulque’s only relation to the agave spirits is
that it also comes from agave plants. While mezcal and tequila are derived
from the piña—or heart—of the agave plant, pulque is made from the sap
of the plant, which is known as aguamiel (honey water).
MYTHS ABOUT TEQUILA

1.Tequila and mezcal are made from a cactus.

WRONG. Cactus plants grow in the desert and are of a different genus than the agave.
There is no known liquor obtained from the cactus.

Agave: Member of the lily family, not a cactus as commonly thought.

2.The worm is part of the tequila or mezcal process.

This is a nice legend, but not true at all. The worm is placed in some mezcal bottles as a
marketing gig. However, the maguey grows worms that are a delicacy in Mexico fetching
astronomical prices at luxury restaurants. The best known are “Gusanos de Maguey” and
“Chinicuiles”. Tequila has medicinal properties. There is no scientific evidence about any
medicinal properties of either the agave plant, mescal or tequila.