24th July: Tequila Day

Today is National Tequila Day. Here are 10 facts about tequila.

1. Tequila, similar to many alcoholic drinks, like Champagne or Cognac, can only be produced in the state of Jalisco and limited municipalities in the states of Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Tamaulipas in Mexico.
2. It is made from the blue agave plant, which grows particularly well in the red volcanic soil in the region.
3. The Aztec people made a fermented beverage from the agave plant. Later, the Spanish conquistadors began to distil agave when they ran out of brandy. Around 1600, Don Pedro Sánchez de Tagle, the Marquis of Altamira, began mass-producing tequila at the first factory in Jalisco. Don Cenobio Sauza, founder of Sauza Tequila and Municipal President of the Village of Tequila from 1884–1885, was the first to export tequila to the United States.
4. Planting, tending and harvesting the agave plant hasn't changed much since those days. It's still largely done by hand, by jimadores, who have passed the knowledge of how to tend the plants from generation to generation. The plants have to be regularly trimmed and harvested at exactly the right time.
5. The differences in taste between tequila made from lowland and highland agave plants is noticeable. Plants grown in the highlands yield sweeter and fruitier tequila, while lowland agaves give it an earthier taste.
6. It can be aged in Oak barrels or casks, as well for even more variations in flavour. The barrels may be smoked, or barrels previously used for storing other types of alcoholic drink such as Whiskey or Wine can be used.
7. The idea that tequila must be served with a worm in it is not traditional but rather a marketing gimmick. In fact, putting a worm in the bottle is not allowed by The tequila regulatory council. Finding one which hasn't been put there by a bartender is a bad sign, because the worm is actually a caterpillar of the moth Hypopta agavis which lives on the blue agave plant. An infestation of Hypopta agavis would result in an inferior product.
8. In Mexico, the traditional way to drink tequila is neat, possibly with a side of sangrita—a sweet, sour, and spicy drink made from Orange juice, grenadine (or Tomato juice), and hot chiles. Outside Mexico a shot of tequila is often served with Salt and a slice of Lime. Drinkers are supposed to lick the back of their hands below the index finger and pour on the salt. The salt is licked off, the tequila is drunk, and the fruit slice quickly bitten. This is not, as many people think, a tequila slammer. A tequila slammer is tequila mixed with a carbonated drink.
9. Cocktails made from tequila include the Margarita (tequila, Cointreau, and lime juice), The Matador (tequila, pineapple juice, and lime juice) and the Tequila Sunrise (tequila, orange juice, and grenadine syrup served unmixed in a tall glass. This drink originates from California in the early 1970s).
10. You can make diamonds out of (40% alcohol) tequila. To do that you would have to heat the stuff to over 800 °C (1,400 °F) to break its molecular structure into gaseous hydrogen, carbon, and various simple molecules; then settle it on steel or silicon trays in a thin and pure uniform layer. Before you get too excited, though, the diamonds you'd get are only about a nanometer in size - way too small to make jewellery. They are only useful for putting in computer chips or cutting tools.