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Tequila, the undisputed national drink of Mexico, is made from the heart of the blue agave (agave tequiliana weber azul), a member of the lily family. Blue agave takes about 8-12 years to reach maturity, at which point it is 5 to 8 feet tall and 7 to 12 feet in diameter. The plant's life span is approximately 8 to 15 years.
The Jimadores (harvesters) strip the agave of it's leaves to the heart of the agave knows as the pina. Once stripped, the pinas are trucked to the distillery, baked in stone ovens, shredded and crushed. The resulting product knows as aguamiel is pumped into fermentation tanks and combined with yeast. It is then required that the tequila be double distilled. Final processing accomplishes filtration and the aging takes place in oak barrels.
Legitimate tequila is only made in the state of Jalisco and surrounding regions as designated by the Mexican governing agent. |
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