Mezcal

Mezcal, or mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from the maguey or agave plant that is native to Mexico. The word mezcal comes from Nahuatl mexcalmetl, which means agave or maguey. This plant grows in many parts of Mexico but most mezcal is made in Oaxaca. There is a saying attributed to Oaxaca regarding the drink: "para todo mal, mezcal y para todo bien también" (for everything bad, mezcal, and for everything good, too. There were no distilled beverages in Mexico before the Spanish Conquest. The Spaniards were introduced to native fermented drinks such as pulque, also made from the maguey plant. Soon the conquistadors began experimenting with the maguey plant to find a way to make a distillable fermented mash. The result is mezcal. Today, mezcal is still made from the heart of the maguey plant, called the piña, much the same way it was 200 years ago in most places. In Mexico, mezcal is generally drunk straight and has a strong smoky flavor that can be difficult to get used to. Though not as popular as tequila, Mexico does export the product, mostly to Japan and the United States, and exports are growing.