Tequila: Behind The Most Representative Mexican Drink

When you think of Mexican drinks the first thing that pops right into your mind is tequila. Its strong taste and versatility makes it one of the most requested drinks to mix behind a bar, also being a key ingredient in the creation of desserts and dishes. But what’s behind this important liquor? Let me tell you about it.

It’s originated in the Tequila Municipality of Mexico, Jalisco; produced from the distillation and fermentation of agave pineapples, and along with the mezcal, one of the most representative mexican alcoholic drinks. It is around 1758 when the product known today as Tequila was born: The Cuervo Family began to distill it commercially, and the Sauza family in 1873 chose to use a particular kind of blue agave to produce the best tequila. And when the prohibition of alcohol was set in the US, the popularity of bars that served tequila in cities around the borderline helped popularize the drink. When the new millennium rolled around, the Mexican government decided that it was its intellectual product and prohibited its production in other countries, establishing a set of rules to abide to.

The laws were passed through the Tequila Regulatory Council in 1974 and ever since its popularity grew, since it was now produced with a stronger taste and better quality. Its taste resides in its purity: To be labeled ‘tequila’ it must be made of at least 60% of agave juice, with the rest of the components being sugars such as corn syrup or sugar cane. The current tradition of drinking it with salt and lime comes from the need to popularize the drink in other markets and to reduce the strength of its flavour to foreign palates.

The love for tequila it’s been around for a while now, and it’s currently one of the must have when you want to do a Mexican inspired party. It’s also well-praised when wanting a shot of a strong liquor, or mixed in softer drinks like The Tequila Sunrise. The guys at RG Cocina Mexicana not only serve it on a daily bases as a beverage, but also create desserts with it like Tequilamisú, a making where sweetness and tequila merge to come up with a very special and particular Tiramisú. If you want to taste it, use the code RGSummerDelivery to get a free delivery from them!