Mezcal is a Mexican spirit distilled from different types of agave. Its production dates from prehispanic times. The various combinations between types of agave, region, cooking, and distillation process, give place to different types of mezcal. Due to the many varieties of notes, smells, and character, mezcal popularity is increasing worldwide.
Mezcal didn’t have the reputation that it has nowadays during the first half of the twentieth century. In the 1990s and 2000s, Mezcal’s reputation started to shine up to the point of winning a place among many other trendy spirits. Nowadays, it is possible to find mezcal in major cities worldwide, and mezcal lovers proliferate every day. However, despite the growing popularity, there are many myths about mezcal.
Mezcal worm: a clarification
When people hear the word “mezcal,” the automatic question is, “Is that the drink with the worm?” Ehem… yes. It is. Well, in part. Mezcal became popular outside of Mexico (the United States and Europe) because of the worm. However, that is just a cheap caricature of what mezcal actually is.
As we said, mezcal is a spirit with centuries of tradition produced out of agave in many regions of Mexico. In Oaxaca, famous for its mezcal production, the red maguey worms are sometimes added to mezcal. Yet, this is not always the case. Now that the mezcal worm cliché is explained, we can go to the substance of mezcal.
Types of agave
Agave is an endemic plant of the American continent. Its distribution goes from the North of Mexico to Colombia and Venezuela, including the Caribbean. There are 210 species of agave worldwide. Around one hundred and fifty species of agave grow in Mexico, of which between thirty are used to produce mezcal. Due to the climate and geographical conditions, agave grows in the regions covering the states of Oaxaca, Durango, Michoacán, Guanajuato, San Luis Potosí, Puebla, Tamaulipas, and Zacatecas.
Types of mezcal
Among the agave varieties in Mexico to produce Mezcal, some have been domesticated, and some are wild agaves. The most famous wild agaves are Tobalá, Cuishe, Coyote, Tepezate, Papalote, Cenizo, Estoquillo, and Mexicano. The most renowned domesticated agave is Espadin. Other names for domesticated agaves are semi-wild and semi-cultivated. Depending on the type of agave, we can find different types of mezcal.
An essential element that gives mezcal its particular character is the region where it grows. This is because the terrain provides specific features to mezcal. For instance, if an agave grows close to a conifers tree, it will imprint pine notes on the mezcal.
Even if we produce a mezcal with the same agave species but from a different region, the taste will differ. For instance, we can try a mezcal espadin from San Juan del Río and a mezcal espadín from Santiago Matatlán, and both will have different notes.
Mezcal can be made out of a single agave or a combination of two or more. A mezcal that is made out of more than one agave is called ensamble. The fact that mezcal can be produced by different agave types also opens the opportunity to have a very rich pallet of notes.
The process to produce mezcal
Mezcal is handcrafted following traditional processes. It can be divided into six stages: growing, harvesting, cooking, grinding, fermenting, distilling. In the growing process, depending on specie, agave can take over eight years to be ready. When the agave reaches its mature age, the agave leaves are cut, and the heart, or the pineapples, are kept for the mezcal.
These pineapples are cooked with different types of woods. In this stage is where the mezcal acquires its smokey flavor. Once the cooking stage is completed, the agave is ground to take the liquid that will be fermented in the next step. For the fermentation, mezcal only uses the natural sugars of agave. This will help to produce alcohol in the spirit. Finally, after fermenting it, the product is distilled, and we will have mezcal.
Mezcal or Tequila
While tequila is a type of mezcal, tequila is made only with blue agave (Blue Tequilana agave). On the other side, mezcal producers use over twenty different types of mezcal.
Another crucial element that differentiates mezcal from tequila is the DOM. While mezcal is made in different parts of Mexico, tequila can only be produced in the region of Tequila.
The third difference between mezcal and tequila is the purity of the sugars needed to produce the spirit’s alcohol. While tequila allows the integration of 49 percent of other sugars, regardless of the origin of those sugars, mezcal does not allow any additional sugar outside of the one already contained in the agave.
Another difference between these spirits is the process of production. While tequila is often made following industrial methods, mezcal follows more often than not traditional methods. This difference gives mezcal the different flavors, characters, and tasting notes.
The differences between mezcal and tequila are vast. The main one is that mezcal has many variations in taste, aroma, and flavor.
The best mezcal
There is no such thing. Mezcal is a vibrant spirit, and before finding our favorite, we need to try among the varieties of mezcal. Like with wine, it takes some time before we identify our favorite type of mezcal. The world of mezcal is vast and diverse, and the best mezcal will be the one that suits your taste best.
