mezcal

Etymology

The word mezcal comes from Nahuatl mexcalli [meʃˈkalːi], which means "baked agave", from metl [met͡ɬ] "agave" and ixca [iʃˈka] "to bake". It is sometimes spelled mescal.

History

Pulque (a fermented drink from agave sap) is pre-colonial, but the distillation of agave heart juice into mezcal was only introduced in the colonial era when Filipino sailors and migrants brought the technology of Filipino-type stills with them during the galleon trade between Mexico and the Philippines (1565 to 1815). This is supported by ethnohistoric, botanical, archaeological, and toponymic evidence. Mezcal is the product of the merging of pre-Columbian indigenous fermentation traditions and Asian distillation techniques brought over from the Philippines.

Filipino-type stills, derived from Mongolian and East Asian stills, are very distinct from the more complex European-type alembic stills (derived from Arabic and Middle Eastern stills). They were cheap and easy to manufacture, though less efficient than alembic-type stills. They were made of a mixture of different easy-to-acquire materials. They usually consist of a hollowed-out log (usually from the parota tree) with two copper or iron pans. These were often substituted with larger capacity earthenware jars and bowls, bound wooden staves, or even metal cylinders. The upper pan is continually filled with cold water and functions as the condenser; while the bottom pan holds the fermented juice over the furnace, functioning as the boiler. The distillate is collected either by an internal container placed in between the two pans on a platform; or a spoon-shaped collector and gutter made from wood, rolled agave leaf, or carrizo cane (originally bamboo in the Philippines) that exits from the hollow log in between the pans to an external clay container. A modified version of this, usually called "olla de barro" (lit. "clay pot"), use a specially-shaped clay vessel (or overlapped clay vessels) built into a furnace as the boiler chamber (doing away with the hollow log and the bottom pan). It only uses one pan (the condenser), but otherwise operates on the same principle. There are also many other modified variants, usually named after the indigenous peoples that use them, including the "Tarascan still" (or "Tarasco still"), "Zapoteco still", "Nahua still", "Bolaños still", and "Huichol still" (the latter used for making sotol, not mezcal). Filipino-type stills are also still referred to by mezcal and tequila manufacturers (especially in Jalisco and Michoacán) as the "Filipino still" (destilador Filipino).

These stills were initially used by Filipino settlers who established coconut plantations on the coastal regions of Guerrero and Colima of New Spain to make vino de coco (coconut liquor, also called lambanog). Over the centuries that the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade was active, an estimated 75,000 Filipinos settled western Mexico and intermarried with indigenous and mixed-race families. They passed the knowledge of these stills to local communities who applied it to distill fermented agave. The first historical record of mezcal production is from southern Jalisco, using techniques derived from coconut liquor production from Colima.

Possible pre-colonial distillation

Some authors have also proposed the existence of a separate pre-colonial distillation of small quantities of agave for elites, based on an interpretation of the peculiarly-shaped double or triple-chambered Capacha Culture clay vessels as small stills. These vessels are known in Spanish as bules, and dates to c.1500 to 1000 BCE. They were hypothesized to have been capped with a condensing cold water-filled bowl, with a very small cup placed inside to collect the distillate. Modern replicas using this method have been successful in producing small quantities of spirits with an alcohol content as high as 35%. If the distillation of mezcal was indeed present in pre-Columbian Mexico, it would mean the introduction of Filipino-type stills merely expanded the production by using new techniques. However, the archaeological evidence for this remains inconclusive, as examination and molecular testing of ancient Capacha bules in 2019 have not detected any of the expected macroscopic botanical remains (like fibers) or chemical biomarkers for agave or any other high-sugar agricultural products (like fruits, cactus juice, honey, or corn) that could be distilled into spirits. Furthermore, all of the vessels are exclusively only found in association with tombs and burial sites (they are absent in utilitarian or industrial sites); they show completely no evidence of ever having been placed over a fire; and no cups or bowls have been recovered in situ in association with them.

Regulation

Internationally, mezcal has been recognized as an Appellation of Origin (AO, DO) since 1994. There is also a Geographical Indication (GI), originally limited to the states of Oaxaca, Guerrero, Durango, San Luis Potosí, Puebla and Zacatecas. Similar products are made in Jalisco, Guanajuato, Michoacán, and Tamaulipas, but these have not been included in the mezcal DO.

Traditionally the word "mezcal" has been used generally in Mexico for all agave spirits and it continues to be used for many agave spirits whether these spirits have been legally certified as "mezcal" or not. Within Mexico, mezcal is regulated under Norma Oficial Mexicana (NOM) regulations, originally NOM-070-SCFI-1994 (in 1994), by the industry body Consejo Mexicano Regulador de la Calidad del Mezcal A.C. (COMERCAM, the Mexican Regulatory Council for Mezcal Quality). This regulation became law in 2003, and certification began in 2005.

Modern mezcal is divided into three categories certified by the Norma Oficial Mexicana:

Mezcal – For mezcal produced with high-efficiency modern production methods and modern equipment like autoclaves, diffusers, and stainless steel or copper column stills. It is sometimes derisively referred to as "industrial mezcal" (mezcal industrial).

Artisanal mezcal (mezcal artesanal) – For mezcal produced using artisanal stills. Autoclaves, diffusers, and column stills are prohibited. The agave hearts must be cooked in pit hearths or clay/brick ovens. Milling must be done with mallets, stone mills, or mechanical mills. The juice must be fermented in animal skins or pits or tanks made with stone, clay, or wood. The most common types of stills used are the copper or stainless steel alembic-type stills (used by the vast majority), the modified refrescador alembic-type stills with a refrescadera (a cylinder of continuously flowing cold water surrounding the still head), and the Filipino-type stills. Mezcal produced in this way are distilled once, twice, or thrice, depending on the regional tradition, but the most common number of distillations is twice. The vast majority of certified mezcal belong to this category.

Ancestral mezcal (mezcal ancestral) – For mezcal produced completely by traditional methods. Stainless steel and modern equipment are prohibited. This requires the agave hearts to be pit-cooked and crushed by mallets or stone mills. The juice must be fermented in animal skins or pits or tanks made with stone, clay, or wood. It must only be distilled using Filipino-type stills made of clay or wood.

Mezcal agave

The Agave genus is a member of the Agavoideae subfamily of the Asparagaceae plant family (formerly included in the now defunct Agavaceae family) which has almost 200 species. There are more than 120 species of agave. The mezcal agave has very large, thick leaves with points at the ends. When it is mature, it forms a "piña" or heart in the center from which juice is extracted to convert into mezcal. It takes between seven and fifteen years for the plant to mature, depending on the species and whether it is cultivated or wild. Agave fields are a common sight in the semi-desert areas of Oaxaca state and other parts of Mexico.

Varieties

Mezcal is made from over 30 agave species, varieties, and subvarieties, in contrast with tequila, which is made only with blue agave. Of many agave species that can be used to make mezcal, seven are particularly notable. There is no exhaustive list, as the regulations allow any agaves, provided that they are not used as the primary material in other governmental Denominations of Origin. The term silvestre "wild" is sometimes found, but simply means that the agaves are wild (foraged, not cultivated); it is not a separate variety.

Most commonly used is espadín "smallsword" (Agave angustifolia (Haw.), var. espadín), the predominant agave in Oaxaca. The next most important are arroqueño (Agave americana (L.) var. oaxacensis, sub-variety arroqueño), cirial (Agave karwinskii (Zucc.)), barril (Agave rodacantha (Zucc.) var. barril), mexicano (Agave macroacantha or Agave rhodacantha var. mexicano, also called dobadaan) and cincoañero (Agave canatala Roxb). The most famous wild agave is tobalá (Agave potatorum (Zucc.)). Others include madrecuixe, tepeztate, jabalí, and bicuixe.

Production

Traditionally, mezcal is handcrafted by small-scale producers. A village can contain dozens of production houses, called fábricas or palenques, each using methods that have been passed down from generation to generation, some using the same techniques practiced 200 years ago. This is an important difference with tequila which is nowadays mostly produced industrially.

The process begins by harvesting the plants, which can weigh 40 kg (88 pounds) each, and extracting the piña, or heart, by cutting off the plant's leaves and roots. The piñas are then cooked for about three days, often in pit ovens, which are earthen mounds over pits of hot rocks. This underground roasting gives mezcal its intense and distinctive smoky flavor. They are then crushed and mashed (traditionally by a stone wheel turned by a horse) and then left to ferment in large vats or barrels with water added.

The mash is allowed to ferment, the resulting liquid collected and distilled in either clay or copper pots which will further modify the flavor of the final product. The distilled product is then bottled and sold. Unaged mezcal is referred to as joven, or young. Some of the distilled product is left to age in barrels between one month and four years, but some can be aged for as long as 12 years. Mezcal can reach an alcohol content of 55%. Like tequila, mezcal is distilled twice. The first distillation is known as ordinario, and comes out at around 75 proof (37.5% alcohol by volume). The liquid must then be distilled a second time to raise the alcohol percentage.

Mezcal is highly varied, depending on the species of agave used, the fruits and herbs added during fermentation and the distillation process employed, creating subtypes with names such as de gusano, tobalá, pechuga, blanco, minero, cedrón, de alacrán, crema de café and more. A special recipe for a specific mezcal type known as de pechuga is distilled with a chicken breast. Other variations flavor the mash with cinnamon, pineapple slices, plátanos manzanos, and sugar, each imparting a particular character to the mezcal. Most mezcal, however, is left untouched, allowing the flavors of the agave used to come forward.

In the 1940s or 1950s, some mezcal producers began adding a gusano de maguey or "worm" (actually the larva of a moth, Comadia redtenbacheri) to bottles of mezcal. Not all bottles of mezcal contain a worm. For those that do, it is added during the bottling process. There are conflicting stories as to why such a thing would be added. Some state that it is a marketing ploy. Others state that it is there to prove that the mezcal is fit to drink, and still others state that the larva is there to impart flavor. Similar ingedients are scorpions (de alacrán) and snakes.

Drinking

In Mexico, mezcal is generally drunk straight, rather than mixed in a cocktail. Mezcal is generally not mixed with any other liquids, but is often accompanied with sliced oranges, lemon or lime sprinkled with a mixture of ground fried larvae, ground chili peppers, and salt called sal de gusano, which literally translates as "worm salt". A saying attributed to Oaxaca regarding the drink is: "Para todo mal, mezcal, y para todo bien, también; y si no hay remedio, litro y medio" ("For everything bad, mezcal, and for everything good, as well; and if there is no remedy, liter and a half").

In the US, Europe, and Japan, mezcal is increasingly becoming a prominent ingredient on many craft cocktail menus, due to its unique combination of smoky and vegetal notes. Often mezcal is swapped for a more traditional spirit, in cocktails such as the "mezcal old fashioned" and the "mezcal Negroni".

Exportation

In the 21st century, mezcal, especially from Oaxaca, has been exported. Exportation has been on the increase and government agencies have been helping smaller-scale producers obtain the equipment and techniques needed to produce higher quantities and qualities for export. The National Program of Certification of the Quality of Mezcal certifies places of origin for export products. Mezcal is sold in 27 countries on three continents. The two countries that import the most are the United States and Japan, and exports are increasing as the liquor grows in popularity. In the United States, a number of entrepreneurs have teamed up with Mexican producers to sell their products in the country, by promoting its handcrafted quality, as well as the Oaxacan culture strongly associated with it.

The booming industry has been met with opposition from ecological activists, in 2021 San-Francisco based neozapatismo news outlet Radio Zapatista, released an article on the damage the industry and its mass-production is doing to the environment of the Mixteca Region and the cultures of the region.

Festival

The state of Oaxaca sponsors the International Mezcal Festival every year in the capital city, Oaxaca de Juárez. There, locals and tourists can sample and buy a large variety of mezcals made in the state. Mezcals from other states, such as Guerrero, Guanajuato, and Zacatecas also participate. This festival was started in 1997 to accompany the yearly Guelaguetza festival. In 2009, the festival had over 50,000 visitors, and brought in 4 million pesos to the economy.

In the media

On September 29, 2024, CBS 60 Minutes contained a segment "The Mezcaleros" on the tradition of Mezcal in Oaxaca, Mexico.