 Tequila
Like Mexican culture itself, tequila is the result of a creative encounter between two worlds.
The ancient indigenous peoples drank the fermented juice of the agave, in the same way that Europeans drank beer or wine. In colonial times, the Spanish introduced the distillation process to obtain the liquor not known as tequila. Tequila is made from the sugars of a very special kind of agave that grows in a limited region of Jalisco and other neighboring states.
Harvesting
A five-year-old Agave Tequilana Weber – commonly called the agave azul (blue agave) – becomes a “mother” plant and produces healthy seedlings via its roots. It takes eight to ten years for an agave azul to mature. Then, in the agave fields, all the “pencas” (spiny, fleshy outer leaves) are cut away, exposing the heart. On account of its appearance – not its taste – it is called a piña (pineapple).
Tequila Processing
The piñas are steam-cooked at the distillery for up to 48 hours in room sized ovens. This cooking converts the starches of the plant into sugars. The cooked agave piñas are shredded, mashed and washed to extract all sugars. The resulting must is called aguamiel (honey water). Fermentation is probably the most significant part of the process. The must is fermented for a period of 18 hours in large vats. With assistance from selected yeast, the transformation of sugars into alcohol takes place.
Distillation
The fermented must is concentrated and purified through the process of distillation in which vapors from the alcohol evaporate then condense. The first two-hour distillation brings the liquor to medium-proof grade. The second distillation finally converts the liquor into a clean, white high-proof spirit. By separating alcohol at the “head” and “tail” of distillation and keeping only the “heart’s” distillate, a very high-quality alcohol product is obtained. This tequila is filtered and its alcohol strength adjusted with water for aging, resting or bottling.
Categories of Tequila
After distillation, tequilas are stored in large vats or aged in oak barrels, depending on the type of tequila or specific brand. The following list contains categories of tequila as defined by the Mexican government.
• Blanco (white) is put in stainless steel tanks with demineralized water for about fifteen days. This is long enough to create a molecular-bond or “marriage” between alcohol and water.
• Reposado (rested) is put in oak vats or barrels for a minimum of two months.
• Añejo (aged) is put in oak barrels for a minimum of one year.
• Joven (young) is a blend of tequilas in which the white type is present with the rested and/or aged type. Vats and barrels are sealed by a government inspector to make sure that the label information is in accordance with the “Norma Oficial”. |
