7 - Tequila and Mezcal Flashcards
What are the most important types of agave spirits?
Tequila and Mezcal
To where are agave plants native?
Central America
How many different species of Agave are there?
Hundreds
Briefly describe Agave plants (of all species)
The roots grow into the ground from a hard central core
The core is covered with long, spiky, waxy-textured leaves
Name carbohydrate reserves in Agave
Fructans
Name a commonly occurring fructan in Agave
Inulin
To what age can Agave plants live?
15-20 years
How does the Agave plant change during its lifetime?
The central core grows as the plant fills it with fructans
What happens when the Agave plant reaches maturity?
It flowers, using up its carbohydrate reserves, then dies
How do distillers use Agave to create alcohol?
They use the fructans, once they’ve been converted to fermentable sugars
When is the best time to harvest Agave?
Just before it flowers as the plant will contain the greatest quantity of fructans
When are agave’s aromas at their most interesting and complex?
Just before flowering
Name some aroma descriptors derived from agave
Bell pepper
Vegetable
Olive
Black pepper
Describe harvesting agave
The plant is cut from its roots
The spiky leaves are cut away and discarded, leaving the central core/piña
What happens once the piña has been delivered to the distillery?
It’s usually halved or quartered, then cooked
What is the goal of cooking the piña?
To convert the fructans into fermentable sugars
To develop flavours within the piña
To soften the piña
What are the two traditional methods of cooking agave?
Steaming
Roasting
How is agave cooked in traditional Tequila production?
It’s slowly steamed in brick ovens
Describe the benefits of steaming the piña
It’s relatively gentle
It develops aromas and flavours that are native to the agave
Name a modern technique for cooking agave
Name it
Cooking in pressurised steam ovens
Autoclaves
What are the potential pitfalls of Autoclaves?
They can burn the piña
Are Autoclaves better or worse than traditional ovens?
They can be just as good
Is Tequila made from agave exclusively steamed in brick ovens?
Rarely
How is the piña cooked in Mezcal production?
Steaming
Roasting
Where is the majority of Mezcal made?
Oaxaca
How is agave often cooked in Oaxaca?
Roasted in stone-lined pits
Briefly describe the typical cooking process in Mezcal production
A fire is lit to heat the stones
Once the fire is out, the pit is lines with piñas
The piñas are covered in earth and left to cook
What effect does the firepit have on Mezcal?
It creates smoky aromas (from subtle to pronounced)
Is all Mezcal smoky?
No
What happens after the piñas are cooked?
The sweet juice is crushed out of them and separated from the fibres within the piña
What’s the most traditional way to crush the piñas?
By hand
What’s the simplest and most common way to process cooked piñas?
To use a large stone wheel called a tahona
Briefly describe crushing using a tahona
It’s rolled around a fixed path within a circular stone pit
Piñas are placed in the path of the tahona stone to crush them
Describe the use of tahonas between Tequila and Mezcal
Widely used in Mezcal production
Their use is limited in Tequila
How are cooked piñas most commonly processed in Tequila?
With complex mechanical milling machines
How is the maximum juice extracted from piñas after crushing?
The crushed fibres are flushed through with water to make sure as much sugar is extracted as possible
Name a new piece of equipment for extracting maximum possible fermentable sugars from agave
Diffuser
How are diffusers used in Tequila production?
Whole, uncooked piñas enter the machine and the output is a liquid rich in fructans
This liquid is then cooked to make the fructans fermentable
What is the major disadvantage of using a diffuser?
Not all of the desired aromas are created in the resulting liquid
Why are diffusers controversial?
Because they fundamentally change the sequence of production
