Agave Spirits That Are NOT Tequila
Learn all about Mexican agave spirits that are NOT Tequila. We are talking about Mezcal, Raicilla and Bacanora!
Photo: Agave image source Pinterest
Most of us know agave makes Tequila, and most of us know that Tequila is this ultimate Mexican spirit. But did you know that Tequila is not the only Mexican spirit? there are other agave based spirits coming from Mexico that are not Tequila.
Tequila is just the start, and a great place to start with agave spirits. Especially here in the UK, where Tequila is readily available at basically any shop that sells booze, others on the list are a lot harder to find… and pronounce.
Mezcal is one that has been popular for a while now and one that is picking up a bit of a cult following here in the UK. With myself especially. If you’re not so familiar with Mezcal, you may better know it as “that bottle of agave based spirit with the worm in it” Yep, that's right, this whole Tequila worm thing, I hate to break it to you but that's not Tequila at all. Only Mezcal has the worm. And its not even a worm. So you might be more familiar with the spirit than you think.
You can check out my guide on the “Tequila worm” here if you want to know more about that worm.
For more about tequila check out my complete guide to Tequila.
But for this article, we are going to be looking at more than just Mezcal. There are in fact 3 agave based and Mexican spirits we are going to look into today. Mezcal is one of them, the other 2 are Bacanora and Raicilla.
As it stands, Tequila has a massive prominence in British drinking culture. We just love the stuff, usually in the form of a party shot, even though another thing that might be surprising to you is the health benefits to drinking Tequila.
That being said, Mezcal has been testing the waters here in Britain for quite awhile now. And even though it's noticeably more expensive than Tequila generally is, sales are still going well. As more people begin to see Tequila as a spirit that can be sipped like bourbon, respected like Scotch, mixed like Vodka and have just as much variety as gin. People are also beginning to question what the other agave spirits are.
So it's safe to assume that the spirits we are about to mention may not be prominent or even easy to find here in the UK, but there is definitely a place for them. I wouldn't even be remotely surprised if within the next 5 years some of if not all of these agave spirits were well known and well stocked here in Britain…
Mezcal
Mezcal is the agave spirit we are often use to seeing with a small “worm” in the bottle. There is a huge variety in the flavours of Mezcal from extremely smoky to floral and light. This is because unlike Tequila which can only be made with one type of agave - Blue Weber. Mezcal can be made with any species of agave, which include Espadin, Tobala and Madre Cuixtle.
Because of this, Mezcal has this ability to vastly range in flavours. I suppose you could say Tequila is consistently tequila, You get bad tequila, then you get good tequila but you kinda know where you’re at. Mezcal is more of a surprise with each bottle.
That being said, there are still rules to Mezcal production. Mezcal is protected by a denomination of origin or “DOM” which means it can only be made in certain areas of Mexico, which are: Oaxaca, San Luis Potosi, Michoacan, Guerrero, Durango, Tamaulipas, Puebla, Zacatecas and Guanajuato. Mainly, the production of Mezcal takes place in Oaxaca.
Also, the ABV has to be between 36% and 55% and can only be made from 100% agave with no additives or other products. Whereas the different Tequila categories determine not the production process but the quantity of agave: Tequila (”Mixto”) and 100% agave Tequila.
What this means is that with Tequila, there is always the chance of getting a low quality product, or “mixto” tequila, which isn’t made with 100% agave. Usually cheaper and usually synonyms with a bad hangover. Whilst Mezcal has to high quality. Which also generally means its easy to find cheap Tequila whereas Mezcal tends to be more expensive.
Due to the traditional way of smoking and roasting the agave during the production of Mezcal, Mezcal is synonyms with a smoky flavour. Which is great for adding a dash of character into any cocktail. Just try adding a spoon of Mezcal into your next Margarita to see the difference.
For more on mezcal and how its made, check out my full guide here.
If you’re looking to buy good Mezcal, I’d recommend checking out MVM Verde Momento Mezcal as its 100% Espadin agave.
Pensador Especial, its more expensive however, it is a limited edition mezcal made with Tepextate agave, this PA1 batch comes from Felipe and Ageo Cortes - a father son team who distil in a refrescador still.
Finally, for an exclusive sipping experience, try Bozal Tobasiche. Made with 100% Tobasiche agave, an agave that takes between 12-13 years to mature.
Also check out the difference between Mezcal and Tequila article to get a closer look on how these spirits differ.
Bacanora
A relatively unknown agave spirit, especially here in the UK is Bacanora. When comparing agave spirits, an easy comparison is to ask “what makes it different from Tequila” As we covered with Mezcal, Tequila is made with one type of Agave, which is Blue weber. But there are hundreds of species of agave, something Mezcal takes advantage of. Check out this full 101 guide on agave to get clued up on your agave knowledge.
But in the case of Bacanora, much like Tequila, it is only made from one single type of agave, however. Instead of the blue weber, bacanora is made with an agave species called “ pacifica”.
This particular type of agave is only found in the mountain ranges of Sonora in the north of Mexico. Sonora’s dry, arid climate manifest in a dry, complex, and peppery spirit, with an earthy finish that’s often enhanced with pine nuts or almonds in the early stages of distillation.
Raicilla
Produced only in Jalisco, specifically near and around the Pacific coast town of Puerto Vallarta. Raicilla is made from wild agave varieties such as chico agar and maximilana. The process of fermenting and distilling these agaves is more similar to that of Mezcal, which often gives Raicilla that smoky characteristics that can easily be confused with Mezcal.
One of the reasons you may (like myself) never of heard of Raicilla is that it was only made commercially in around 2008, and only legalized for import in the United States in 2014. Raicilla has a reputation for being somewhat of a “Mexican moonshine” A low quality and illegally made agave spirit.
Raicilla has been produced for hundreds of years. It’s a very old spirit, made originally by Mexican minors in Jalisco where it was a very localised spirit. During the 18th century when the Spanish took control of Mexico and began to tax agave spirits, Raicilla producers avoided the massive tax by being made in secret, taking there production away into the mountains of Jalisco and underground. Hence why it gained this label of being Mexican moonshine.
For years this spirit was made in secret and that “moonshine” reputation is hard to kick, especially when you have been around for hundreds of years and only recently started to become commercialized.
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Hi, I’m Cameron, guv’nor of Smartblend and author of this article. If you liked this then you’re in luck, I have a bunch of agave spirit content here. just check out the above or click here for more. Oh, and don’t forget to sign up below to receive the Smartblend monthly newsletter!
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