To many, mezcal is tequila’s rotgut cousin. To others, like myself, mezcal is one of the most complex, desirable, and sippable liquors in existence. Of course, there are, today, mass market and cheap mezcals that can be called low-priced swill, but this does not define mezcal. Another thing that does not define mezcal is how it differs from tequila. You see, asking the difference between mezcal and tequila is a trick question.
Which Came First, Mezcal or Tequila?
The answer is easy: mezcal. The word mezcal comes from the native Nahuatl words metl (agave) and ixcalli (cooked or baked).
The word was once used by European settlers in Mexico to refer to the agave (or maguey) plants themselves and also to cooked or baked agave. These plants, indigenous to Mexico and quite ubiquitous, had been a staple food of the region for thousands of years.
Precisely when native people began distilling fermented beverages (known as pulque) from agave is unknown. It may have been before or after Colonial settlers arrived although many sources claim that Spanish settlers introduced the practice of distillation of hard liquor.
Regardless, it is generally accepted that by 1700, the practice was well-established. The resulting liquors, like the plants before, were known as mezcal and eventually, the word began to be used only for these distilled spirits.
Tequila began to be distilled also in the 1700s, in the town of Tequila in the area of Jalisco. This does not mean that tequila was ‘invented’ at the same time as mezcal. You see, tequila was (and still is, despite politics) a type of mezcal.
So, now the basic question can be answered: What’s the difference between tequila and mezcal? There is no difference. Tequila is mezcal.
Tequila Goes Big
During the late 1800s, those tequila producers in Tequila, known as tequileros, began to get ambitious. They expanded their operations and began to modernize and industrialize tequila making. Tequila began to be a factory product. This certainly differentiated it from the hand-made small-batch stuff the mezcarelos were making in other parts of Mexico.
By the late 1800s, tequila had become the most famous mezcal, enough so that it was no longer called a mezcal that came from tequila, but simply tequila. Tequila is a tequila mezcal, just like burgundy is a Burgundy wine (a wine from Burgundy).
What’s Different About Tequila?
A lot is made about the fact that, by regulation, tequila can only be made from one variety of agave, Agave tequilana Weber, the so-called blue agave that comes from the state of Jalisco. This exclusivity has led the public to believe that this variety of agave is superior and produces a higher-quality spirit. This is Poppycock.
Mezcal is made from 20 to 40 different varieties of agave (estimates vary), and while some varieties may be better than others for mezcal making, the idea that the tequila variety is far superior is a myth.
The reason tequila became so exclusive and defined by one type of agave was because of competition. As tequila producers expanded and their products became more popular, they began to be worried about knockoff products produced outside of the region, including in Europe.
So, they appealed to the government to set strict standards. By 1949, the standard was that tequila could only be made from one variety of agave, as stated.
However, this was not enough, so by 1974, Tequila began to be protected by a denomination of origin similar to those that existed in Europe. The government established rules as to the place where tequila could be produced and how it must be produced in order to be labeled tequila. Tequila, through marketing and politics, became Mexico’s national spirit.
While tequila was a specific type of mezcal that could be produced in Jalisco and four other states, mezcal remained simply a generic term for any liquor distilled from agave, which is all it ever was.
In 1994, though, a designation of origin (DO) was also introduced for Mezcal, confining it to eight states. None of this necessarily resulted in higher quality or better-tasting mezcals. There is much debate and controversy surrounding these DOs. Do they really protect Mexico’s national heritage? Do they keep the liquors safer? Or are they more about industrialization and economies of scale?
Before Mezcal: Pulque
Most distilled products began with a fermented beverage. Mezcal is no different. It came from a fermented maguey beverage known as pulque. Before mezcal was distilled, pulque had been produced in Mexico for millennia. This fermented agave drink is a like a milky beer with a sweet and yeasty flavor.
However, the pulque you might find in Mexico city, sold in pulquerias is not always to be recommended. Pulque doesn’t keep well and these stale versions are often adulterated with fruit juice.
In ancient Mexico, pulque was sacred. Considered the drink of the Gods, the Aztecs and Mayans used it during ritual ceremonies. And, although it was not drunk recreationally (such alcohol use was prohibited), it was also prescribed for the sick and elderly, as well as for pregnant women.
More Like This
What’s the Difference Between Tequila and Mezcal?
What Is Sloe Gin?
What is Irish Coffee?
What Is Drambuie?
What Is A Dram?
