Definition: Tequila

Today, with the arrival of Tex-Mex cuisine in Europe, tequila's image has taken on a new lease of life. Many different versions have emerged about the creation of the famous cocktail made with tequila: the Margarita. Here is the most common one. In 1936, Danny Negrette, owner of the Crespo Hotel in Puebla (Mexico), invented a drink for his girlfriend one night. She seemed to have a passion for salt and generously seasoned her drinks. Very inventive, the hotel owner combined tequila with orange liqueur, lemon juice and, of course, salt. The famous drink was born. It's easy to guess the name of his girlfriend. The name would give its name to the famous cocktail known throughout the world, which would come back into vogue in the 1970s. But this is one of the many legends surrounding its creation. Paradoxically, in France, it was thanks to Jean Jacques Beineix's film "37°2 le matin" (1986) that it made a comeback. However, there are many misconceptions surrounding this mysterious drink, and everyone has their own memories of it, with its various physiological effects. Long forgotten, tequila has become a favourite in trendy venues and is a real sweet madness.

A legend about tequila says that in Aztec times, lightning struck a field of agaves one day. The lightning struck one of the plants and the heat it gave off was so intense that it burned its heart. The cooked plant fermented naturally. The Indians were very surprised to notice that a very fragrant substance was oozing out. With some apprehension, some of them drank the nectar that seemed to them to have come from heaven. They concluded that this drink, created by the combination of lightning and fire, was indeed a sign from the gods. This fusion had transformed into a new and mysterious beverage, which they initially called "vino mezcal". As for the word "tequila", it comes from the Nahuatl Indian word "Tequiatl", which means "El que bebe muchas veces" (he who drinks many times). Others see it as the word "Tequilt", which means "tribute, tax, work". One must consider the amount of work involved in producing tequila after numerous transformations.

Tequila and mezcal are Mexico's main alcoholic beverages, now renowned worldwide. The main characteristic of tequila is that it is produced exclusively from agave, Mexico's most popular plant. Mexican standards (norma Oficial) require that at least 51% of the alcohol in tequila come from blue Tequilana Weber agave. According to the "Norma", the Mexican government agency CRT (Consejo Regulador del Tequila) gives each bottle a number that certifies where the tequila was produced, and each distillery has its own number.

Some producers buy agave according to their needs, while others have their own crops, which allows them to better control quality. At harvest time, known as jima, the plant is carefully stripped of its sharp leaves, called pencas, by an agave farmer called a jimador. Using a very sharp tool called a coa, the jimador first cuts the roots at ground level, digs up the agave, then turns it over and cuts out the heart, which resembles a giant pineapple weighing 30 to 60 kg and is called a piña. Working methods have changed very little and are still largely manual. This is because, unlike the bunches of grapes in our vineyards, once the agave has been harvested, the plant will take 8 to 12 years to grow and mature. During this time, the plant produces a kind of bulb that is replanted to create a new plantation.

Each producer uses their own cooking method. After being cut into two or four pieces, the piñas are loaded into a large brick or concrete oven, now replaced by giant autoclaves. Then, after being tightly sealed, like a pressure cooker, the agaves are heated with steam to raise the pressure to a temperature of around 55°C for 24 to 35 hours (depending on the type of oven), then left to cool for 24 hours. It is during this steam cooking process that the plant's starches are converted into sugars, which will become alcohol through fermentation. The residues from the crushing process are shredded before being spread on the fields as fertiliser.

Then comes the pressing stage. Once cooked, the piñas are put through a press to extract the sugar from the fibres using water. Next comes fermentation, which takes place in large tanks ranging from 5,000 to 50,000 litres for the largest producers. The sugars are converted into alcohol thanks to the action of yeasts and catalysts that accelerate fermentation in 40 to 80 hours.

The final stage, distillation, is always carried out in two stages, in accordance with Mexican law. The fermented juice, also known as "mosto", is distilled for the first time in a stainless steel or copper still. It is heated until the alcohol evaporates, and the vapour rises into a cooling condenser. When the vapour is condensed and cooled, it produces a product called "ordinario". Its alcohol content is then between 20% and 30%. Then comes the second distillation, which will increase the alcohol content to up to 55%. This is 100% pure agave tequila. It will remain 100% agave juice or be mixed with water ("mixtos") and will be given a quality classification. When you buy it, the label also specifies the type of alcohol. If the tequila you have chosen is 100% pure agave, this will automatically be indicated on the label, along with its category: reposado, blanco añejo; if there is nothing on the label, it is probably tequila joven abocado or gold.

In 1785, the Viceroy of Mexico, Matias Galvez, requested and obtained a decree prohibiting the manufacture and sale of "intoxicating" beverages and promoting spirits from the Iberian Peninsula. Tequila was first produced in Amatitlan, near Guadalajara. The first factory was opened in the^18th century by Juan Sanchez de Tegla Caballero de la Orden de Calabra. But it was in 1795 that the new King Charles IV granted the very first official licence authorising the production of mezcal wine to Don José de Cuervo, and the first distillery to export tequila to the United States, around 1873, was that of Don Cenobio Sauza. Currently, there are only about fifty government-authorised distilleries producing tequila in Mexico.

The distinguishing feature of the quality of different tequilas is mainly their age:

Tequila "blanco, plata, or silver" according to the producer: it has not been aged in barrels. Generally unaged, blanco tequila is a little more robust and seems a little harsher than tequila that has been aged in contact with wood.

Reposado tequila: this must be aged for at least 60 days in wooden barrels, but this can be up to 12 months depending on the producer, which not only changes the aroma but also the taste, and depending on the length of time it is aged in the barrel, it becomes slightly amber in colour and its taste becomes more vanilla and spicy, and therefore sweeter.

Añejo tequila: this has been aged for one to three years in oak barrels that are sealed by the government. This longer ageing period brings out the delicate balance between the essence of blue agave and the aroma and smoothness of the oak barrel. It can be enjoyed in a cognac glass to bring out all its flavours.

Tequila joven abocado or "gold" (young tequila): this is the type you find everywhere in restaurants, nightclubs, bars, etc. It is almost always blended and therefore has not been aged in oak barrels. Very often it is a tequila blanco, quite dry in taste and possibly coloured and artificially flavoured with a little caramel, which makes it sweeter and gives it an amber appearance.

Normally, only five states are authorised to produce it: Nayarit, Tamaulipas, Michoacan, Guanajuato, and of course the state of Jalisco, where the two main producing regions are located. One is in the west, about 60 km from the large city of Guadalajara in the Amatitán Valley, where the small town of Tequila is located. The other is on the opposite side, to the east in the Los Altos valley near the town of Arandas. These two regions are home to some very famous distilleries, known throughout the world: Sauza, Cuervo, Azteca, etc.

Among the many variations, here are a few tequila-based cocktails:

MARGARITA: choose a blanco tequila mixto, which goes well with lime, and a good triple sec. Ingredients: 4 measures of tequila (60ml) + 2 measures of triple sec (30ml) and a little fine salt to frost the rim of the glass and a wedge of lime. Preparation: mix the tequila, triple sec and lime juice in a shaker with ice cubes and shake well.

El AVENTURERO: tequila, mezcal, pineapple juice, coconut juice. Best served in a coconut.

ACAPULCO: 3 measures of white tequila (45 ml), 4 measures of pineapple juice (60 ml), Sprite. Mix the tequila and pineapple juice with ice in a whisky glass. Then fill with Sprite and stir.

TEQUILA SUNRISE: 5 cl white tequila, 15 cl orange or pineapple juice, 2 cl grenadine syrup. Mix the tequila and orange or pineapple juice in tall glasses. Add ice cubes. Pour in a dash of grenadine syrup without stirring.

TEQUINI: 6 measures of white tequila (90 ml), 1 measure of dry vermouth (15 ml). A few drops of Angostura bitters, 1 lemon peel cut into a spiral. Stir the drinks with ice cubes in a mixer. Then pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with lemon.

In Mexico, tequila is usually drunk neat as an aperitif around 2pm, before the traditional working-class lunch. The cantina is the meeting place for all Mexican machos. According to custom, tequila or beer is drunk there. It is incorrectly called "la" tequila in French, thus giving this eminently virile alcohol a feminine gender, which always makes Mexicans smile. To drink el Tequila "Mexican style", put a little fine salt on the flat of your hand or near your thumb, lick it, take a good swig, then bite into a slice of lemon.

A selection of excellent brands (not exhaustive): Herradura, Cofradia, Orendain, Tres Magueyes, La Arandina, Don Julio, Gran Centenario, El Tesoro añejo, Jose Cuervo, Del Senor, Jalisco Gold, Camino Real, Mariachi, Tres Hermanos, Sauza Hornitos.