Mexico celebrates National Tequila Day

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Here we introduce you to the differences that exist between tequila and mezcal, as well as international personalities who have their own label

You cannot talk about Mexico without mentioning tequila, a proudly Guadalajara drink with such a unique flavor and personality that it has crossed borders to become one of the most important cultural references and Mexican identity in the world.

It is also thanks to the denomination of origin and the international success of tequila that several celebrities produce their own label in La Perla de Occidente. They include famed actor George Clooney, who was a co-owner of the successful Casamigos brand; Daddy Yankee created his Cartel label; guitarist Carlos Santana joined Casa Noble as a partner; For his part, Justin Timberlake collaborated with Sauza for the creation of 901 tequila, and Dwayne Johnson “La Roca”, joined this guild with his Teremana tequila earlier this year.

A very popular drink is also mezcal and sometimes it can be a real challenge to identify them, that is why today we want to give you the keys to differentiate these two Mexican products.

La ruta del tequila - WSJ

Tequila and mezcal are obtained from the fermentation and distillation of agave, but it is the type of maguey – the raw material – that varies from one to the other. For example, blue agave is used for tequila, which is known as weber tequilana, while different types of maguey can be used for mezcal.

Both are artisan drinks. Mezcal is cooked in an underground oven with firewood and, later, it is usually ground with an Egyptian mill. Tequila has a significant number of producers and exporters, and its industry has grown in recent years due to its great popularity, but like the original from Oaxaca, the tequila process respects the traditional method of cooking in masonry ovens. For the preparation of pineapples, both at the end of their cooking follow the agave juice extraction process to give way to fermentation and later to distillation.

The ethyl percentage can also help to differentiate both products, since tequila remains between 36 and 40 degrees, while mezcal exceeds 40 degrees of alcohol.

These small differences in production are accentuated in flavor because although both distillates have the citrus and herbaceous presence of agave, mezcal has a strong character with very marked smoky flavors due to the contact that the pineapples had with the firewood during its production. cooking. The type of agave is also very important for taste, and mezcal, when made from different varieties, does not have a flavor as defined as is the case of tequila, which also has a more floral and sugary presence and a flavor most recognizable between labels.

Both drinks have a designation of origin, and this can become a key point to distinguish them: mezcal can be produced in entities such as Oaxaca, Guerrero, Michoacán, Tamaulipas, Durango, Guanajuato, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas, Puebla, State of Mexico, Morelos and Aguascalientes, and despite the fact that tequila is recognized as a product mainly from Guadalajara because it originates in the Magic Town of Tequila because it has the ideal land for the cultivation of the blue weber tequila agave, it is also produced in states like Tamaulipas, Nayarit, Michoacán, and Guanajuato.

Source: informador.mx

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