Nothing like a shot of tequila with a little salt and lemon, a Friday afternoon after finishing a long week. Or, does something relax more than a Tequila Sunrise or a delicious margarita? If you say you are a lover of this delicious drink, have you ever wondered about the origin of tequila? Today in Supercurious We want to tell you where this typical Mexican drink comes from as well as some of its most surprising curiosities. Do you think you will lose it?
Discover the Origin of Tequila: the delicious Mexican drink
1. Geographic origin
To talk about the origin of tequila we have to start talking about plants. Do you know the agave? It is a succulent plant that, in its "agave tequilana" variant, blooms once and dies after doing so. From the juice extracted from this plant, Tequila is fermented and distilled (as well as mezcal).
You have already heard that everywhere Tequila is related to Mexico, and it is said that this drink is a central part of their identity. None of this is false: the origin of tequila can be traced geographically to Jalisco , specifically to your municipality Amatitán.
2. Productive origin
Do you like tequila but do not know how to distinguish them? We give you an indication! First you must know that the Tequila is different from Mezcal , both are made from the Agave but, as we have indicated previously, in the case of the first one it is reduced to the tequilana agave. Of course, for tequila to be considered pure, it must be made in its entirety from agave.
To differentiate them, you can look at the label of the drink, where it is indicated if the origin of the tequila is 100% agave or if it is of a mixed nature. If Tequila is not pure, then it is probably mixed with other types of sugars, corn syrup or sugar cane.
The production process of tequila
The first step in the production of Tequila is extraction. There you should separate the carbohydrates from the agave pineapples from their fiber. This is commonly done with roller mills. The second part is the formulation where any of the two categories of this drink is made: 100% agave tequila or simply Tequila.
In a third moment the fermentation takes place: the sugars are transformed by the yeasts. Finally, the distillation phase arrives. In this the constituents of the must are separated (agave juice). After this the Tequila can be packed for its avocamiento or packaging and sent to maturation to make a delicious aged Tequila.
3. Etymological origin
We already said that Tequila is a representative Mexican drink. However, the plant from where it comes is of American origin: the Agave has been used for more or less 9,000 years by those who have inhabited Mesoamerica.
Nahualt origin (the language of the native peoples and still alive of the Mesoamerican territory) the voice Tequitl it means work. This designation náhualt would mean the place or the specific job of cutting plants (how to cut the agave) , as well as the task of those who work the field. In short, the name of the distillate was due to the Tequila village , which, together with Atotonilco, actively participated in the commercial and industrial boom of the beverage.
4. The Origin of Tequila: its history
The original peoples of Mesoamerica point to their deities as those who taught them to ferment the maquey (agave). It is said that a few Indians from Jalisco encountered a storm that fell on a maguey field. While they were sheltering in a cave, they saw how Lightning struck an agave , hitting the plant, specifically your heart. This caused the starches to be cooked and the plant to turn into honey. After that, a gentle wind passed and made the natives smell the pleasant aroma of cooked agave.
The witnesses of this event tasted a sweet piece of the plant, although later they forgot the juice of the agave in the cave. After the time they returned, the juice was still there, now with a thick white foam. They took it and felt drunkenness; there they knew, as the legend ends, that it was Mayáhuel, the goddess of drunkenness, who had given them this gift.
The use of this plant was paramount for these inhabitants, before the white colonization. It was used for combustion, its medicinal uses were not wasted, and, of course, his pineapple was fermented. The Spaniards who came to the Abyayalense continent, as they learned from the Arabs, brought with them distillation practices. It was probably there when the distillation of the maguey juice, that mead fermented by the towns that own the territories, became the so-called Vino de Mezcal. This wine was the first version of Tequila as we know it today: fermented and distilled.
After knowing the Origin of Tequila, how about sharing one, feeling the weight of history and industry on the palate? Of course, before leaving us a comment and tell us how much you like tequila or any experience related to it and tell us if you already knew the origin of tequila or you have discovered it here.