Every drop of mezcal contains centuries of tradition.
What started as a beverage reserved for the palates of Mexican locals has grown in popularity over the last decade in the United States.
Mezcal, known for its aromatic complexity and smoky flavor, is made from agave, like Mexican beverage counterpart tequila. However, the alcohols diverge in the types of agave used in the preparations.
“Tequila can only be made from blue agave,” explained Eduardo Rodriguez, producer of Leyenda Robles Mezcal. “Mezcal has more variety.”
There are dozens of agave varietals, according to Rodriguez’s wife and business partner, Noreida Rodriguez, who is a fourth-generation mezcal producer.
Similar to champagne’s protected designation of origin, the two boozes can only be made in certain places in Mexico.
Tequila can solely be produced in 181 municipalities in Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Nayarit and Tamaulipas.
Mezcal’s official appellation must be Oaxaca, Guerrero, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas or Durango, as well as some municipalities in Guanajuato, Tamaulipas, Michoacán and Puebla.
Ancestral or artisanal?
Mezcal is made from the core of an agave plant after all of its leaves are cut off. That core, called the piña, is then cooked underneath the ground in pits heated with firewood and covered in soil, typically for two to seven days.
Then comes the grinding, which determines whether mezcal is ancestral or artisanal.
Ancestral mezcal is ground by hand with a heavy wooden wheel that crushes the burnt piñas to remove the liquid that will go to distillation. In artisanal mezcal, maestros use a volcanic stone wheel, generally moved by a mule tied to the mechanism.
Distillation then occurs in copper or clay pots.
“There are very few batches because sometimes only two bottles are taken out per day and it is drop by drop,” explained Miguel Alvarez, importer and distributor of mezcal in Texas.
He adds the clay pots give it a spectacular flavor.
The ancestral and artisanal processes can often set mezcal apart from tequila, according to Noreida Rodriguez.
“The tequila process is already very industrialized, but mezcal is still made in ovens under the earth, with much more artisanal processes,” said Rodriguez.
Flavors of mezcal tend to hinge on the type of agave used, from the mild espadín variety to the wild and strong jabalí.
Distinctions can also be found with the addition of fruits and herbs. And there’s even a mezcal called “de pechuga,” involving a distillation process with a chicken breast and some fruits.
Sip and savor
Mezcal is a drink packed with tradition.
In Oaxaca, for instance, it is considered a sacred drink. It’s customary to “throw some to the mother,” which means pouring or spilling mezcal onto the ground ahead of a ritual or tasting.
The action gives thanks to Mother Earth, who provided mezcal, and also honors the dead, Alvarez said.
While consumers can choose to drink mezcal alone or in cocktails, it is typically recommended to drink it slowly.
A saying in Oaxaca compares the art of sipping mezcal to drinking with kisses — taking deliberate, little sips to soak everything in.
“You have to savor it and take the time to enjoy it,” said Alma Lopez, founder of the popular Expo Tequila & Mezcal in The Colony. “You have to take the time to train your palate to that taste.”
This story is part of D-FW Sabores, a series dedicated to finding authentic Mexican cuisine across North Texas, dish by dish, region by region.