Tequila is ... Tequila: history, composition, rules and features of use

Tequila is Mexico. Mexico is tequila. These two concepts are inextricably linked. In any person they are always associated with each other. This drink represents for Mexico a whole history of its culture and people. The popularity of tequila in Europe is growing every year. It is used in cocktails and pure form. Tequila from the first sip causes either admiration or neglect.

The history of the appearance of tequila

Tequila is the taste of Mexico, a drink of vigorous Mexican temper. According to an old legend, alcohol appeared more than four centuries ago. The story tells that lightning struck in the agave, as a result of which the plant ignited. From the core of the chopped cactus appeared fragrant nectar, which the Indians immediately called the gift of the gods. The Toltec tribe learned how to prepare a light-milky, frothy drink from agave juice called pulque. The new product did not have a special fortress, it reached about four to six percent.

Pulke was the only alcoholic beverage produced by Mexico until the time when the European technologies of making alcoholic beverages were imported to the territory of the state by the Spaniards. In 1600, the Marquis of Altamir, on his own ranch, founded the first factory on which tequila was produced. The history of tequila now becomes completely different: the product quickly began to gain popularity. Today, five Mexican states produce tequila from agave. But the best varieties are made in the state called Jalisco.

Classification of the drink

Most people are sure that tequila is cactus vodka. But in fact the product is produced by distilling the juice, which is extracted from the core of the blue agave. Tequila is divided into two categories: a 100% agave drink and a product that includes 51% of agave sugars and 49% of other sugars. Both species are divided into four more varieties:

• Blanko (Silver) - transparent and pure tequila, which is distributed in bottles, once the distillation process is completed.
• Joven (Golden) - this brand of tequila can not stand in barrels. Before pouring alcohol into bottles, it is added with such flavors as oak extract, sugar syrup, glycerin or caramel dye.
• Reposado (Mature) - this is the tequila, which for two months to one year is kept in oak barrels.
• Anejo (Ultra-aged) - in oak barrels this kind of drink is aged for at least one year and a maximum of ten.

Tequila is a product that gained worldwide fame in 1968 at the Olympic Games held in Mexico City. Then all the grades of the drink gradually began to conquer the world.

Composition of tequila

What is tequila? Most people will answer this question like this: it's a drink made from cactus. But this is not true. Alcohol is produced from the core of a blue agave, which is a "cross" of pineapple and cactus. In addition to agave juice, the product includes yeast, cane sugar or corn syrup and distilled water.

Tequila is a drink that is prepared by fermenting the agave juice. The result is a liquid containing five to seven percent alcohol. Then such mixture is distilled. The strength of the resulting tequila comes to 50-55 degrees. Ready-made drink can be sold, but there are manufacturers who, for the sake of increasing the volume of the finished product, lower its strength. To do this, they mix distilled water and alcohol. Mexican legislation allowed to dilute this alcohol to 38 degrees.

Do I need a worm

Many people ask a question about what tequila is, they will say that it is a drink, a special worm is placed in a bottle with which. All this is a profound error. In fact, the presence of such an unusual additive only worsens the taste of the tequila itself and reduces its quality. Some manufacturers resort to this trick just to get foreigners interested in their product. The real tequila, the story of which was described above, was invented without adding any "living creatures". Today, all this is just a marketing move.

If there is a worm in a bottle with an alcoholic beverage - then this is a completely different Mexican product - mezcal. And such an additive is the main feature that distinguishes it from other alcoholic beverages. Such alcohol is made not only from blue agave, but also from other varieties of this plant.

Ways of using tequila

The use of tequila is a very unusual thing. There are three ways to do this. The first option is used by true connoisseurs and connoisseurs of this product. A real, seasoned drink slowly sipping one sip to fully enjoy his bouquet. Tequila suitable for this method is room temperature. Pour alcohol into special piles that have a thick bottom. Such dishes are called caballito, which in Spanish means "small horse".

There is another traditional method that shows how to properly drink tequila. Its rules are as follows: the product must be washed down with sanguite. This is a special non-alcoholic drink based on lime juice, tomato juice and incredibly hot Mexican chili peppers. Sometimes sangrit can be so acute that it can compete with the tequila for the effect it produces.

In clubs and bars one more, no less popular variant of the use of tequila is practiced. It is called "lick-overtake-bite". The peculiarity of it is that, in addition to the drink itself, it will take a quarter of lime and salt. There is an erotic variety of this variant: salt should be licked off the shoulder of a lying woman, tequila should be drunk from her navel, and the young lady holds a lime with her teeth. The whole procedure is carried out without hands.

Useful information about tequila

So, we found out what tequila is made of. Its composition was considered above. But there are still some "secrets" with which it is recommended to familiarize each drink lover. Thus, the strength of export tequila reaches 38-40%, while the same indicator for domestic consumption can reach 46%. In the bottle with a beverage, the presence of solid small particles can be considered. This indicates that the product for flavor preservation before bottling in the tank was not filtered.

The label of this tequila must contain the Denominacion de Origon marking. It is a license from the Government of Mexico to apply the name of a drink in accordance with the area of its origin. Also on the label should be the numbers responsible for the quality of the product.

Will there be a hangover

In tequila, the content of fusel oils is almost not regulated. They are beautifully masked by the light aroma of the grass. Therefore, the drink makes a man intoxicating faster than vodka. If a person can drink too much tequila, then the hangover syndrome is guaranteed. So it turns out that tequila and a hangover - things are not compatible, but of any rules there are, as you know, exceptions.

Popular brands of tequila

In the modern market, there are several of the most well-known brands involved in the production of this product. Tequila Jose Cuervo appeared as a result of the fact that in 1785 Jose Antonio Cuervo bought agave plantations and a small factory that makes mezcal. Jose Maria, the son of Jose Antonio, a decade later from the King of Spain received the first in Jalisco, a document that allows you to make alcohol. Then the factory was run by the children of José María, but after a while they lost their father's legacy, but in 1900 they were restored to their rights.

Tequila Olmeca is a brand that was one of the first to appear in Russia. The name of the drink was given in honor of the ancient Indian civilization - the Olmecs. They claimed that they were the descendants of a jaguar and a mortal girl. As the legend says, the juice of the blue agave was rated by one of the gods. He ordered to drink a wonderful drink only to the celestials. But many years later a peasant from the Aztec family gave the ferment to the agave juice. The received drink, despite the ban, was tried by the emperor Montezuma.