Tequila

The fame of Mexico’s national beverage, tequila has gotten beyond all frontiers.

It is made out of a plant named “blue agave” that only grows in the states of Jalisco and Nayarit. As early as the pre-Hispanic era, the plant was used for a variety of purposes, even to squeeze out a beverage called “Aguamiel” that Aztecs used to drink when Hernan Cortez arrived in Mexico in 1519. Tequila, as we know it today, is the fruit of a distilling process introduced by the Spaniards.

The first tequila distillery was founded in the mid 19th century by Nicolas Rojas, who named this industry after him as ”La Rojera”. Later on, he sold it to Jesus Flores and his nephew Jose M. Cuervo inherited it. Today, this is one of the most famous brands. As we speak, the tequila-making industry employs a fifth of a million people.

Of all the tequilas produced in Mexico, the best-know brand is the one produced in the state of Tequila, some 45 miles from Guadalajara. You can take a trip from the state capital to the village of Amatitan for a firsthand look at the distilling process and to learn a tad more about Mexico’s culture.

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