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July 18, 2025 40 mins

Agave 101

@Lapulgaspirits @puntagave @ilegalmezcal @vetustomezcal #agave #agavespirits #sotol #tequila #mezcal #podcast #radioshow #host Co hosts : Good ol Boy Michael, Good ol Boy Mike, and Good ol Gal Cary Ann

SIPS – Unveiling the Spirit of the Plant - Join us for an enlightening journey into the world of agave spirits in this Agave 101 episode! We  tackle everything you didn't know about this fascinating plant. From tequila and mezcal to lesser-known spirits, we dive deep into the cultivation, production, and unique characteristics of agave. Discover the secrets behind the production processes, the varieties of agave, and the nuances that make each spirit distinct.

In this episode, we taste a selection of agave spirits, including a refreshing sotol from La Pulga, a clean tequila from Puntagave, and a smoky mezcal from Corte Vetusto. With tasting notes and ratings from our knowledgeable hosts, you'll gain a newfound appreciation for these spirits. Whether you're a seasoned aficionado or a curious newcomer, there's something for everyone as we sip, savor, and share our insights on the incredible world of agave.

We will be discussing these agave spirits and rating them from 1-5 with 5 being the best:

8:08 La Pulga Sotol Silver - SIPS - 4

20:23 Puntagave Tequila Blanco - SIPS - 4

30:17 Ilegal Mezcal Reposado - SIPS - 3

37:52  Corte Vetusto Mezcal Ensamble IV- SIPS - 5

Post production note: Mike has the worst case of bronchitis and so his voice keeps changing from the different recordings - primary and post plus coughing while we review/rate these fine products. He simply was not going to let a short term illness to delay this production for one more minute.

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Catchup with Cary Ann on her blog - www.straightup615.com

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Executive Producer: Good ol Boy Mike

Agave, Tequila, Mezcal, Sotol, Agave Plants, Alcohol Production, Agave Varieties, Agave Spirits, Cocktail Culture, Agave Harvesting, Agave Reproduction, Mexican Spirits, Agave Production Process, Agave Tasting, Agave Cocktails, Agave History, Agave Flavor Profiles, Agave Regions, Agave Certifications, Agave Plant Uses

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
>> Announcer (00:00):
On the next episode of Sips, Suds and
smokes.

>> (00:04):
It is, uh, agave time.
And this is our Agave 101
episode. Lots of things come from this
plant, uh, which is a bit like aloe,
but we're going to focus on agave

(00:25):
plants, uh, used with alcohol.
The short list is tequila and
mezcal. But there are a few things maybe you did
not know in this 101 discussion.
I know that I've learned a lot of things just
in the basic research for this episode.

>> Speaker C (00:43):
The plant itself is grown all over the
world with over 300 varieties
and 200 of them grow in
Mexico.

>> Announcer (00:53):
We'll be right back after this break.

(01:17):
Brought to you almost live from the dude in the
basement studios.

>> Speaker D (01:21):
Why?

>> Announcer (01:22):
Because that's where the good stuff is. It
sips, suds and smokes with your
smoke and toast. The good old boys.

(01:49):
And now it's sippin time.

>> Speaker C (01:53):
Foreign.

>> (01:59):
Welcome to this sips episode where everything
good in life is worth discussing. We
are the best thing on at 2am and we thank you for choosing
to listen to us instead of pharmaceuticals
with my guests. You're actually hearing my post
production voice right now. But when we recorded this
originally, I was fighting a very bad case
of bronchitis. So you're going to hear the voice that you hear

(02:21):
now as well as the the day of
recording. So don't be alarmed if it sounds different
or you're just bouncing between me being able to
speak well or coughing through the whole experience.
Well, I've got a boy, Mike. And joining me here at the
table are good old boy Michael.

>> Speaker D (02:40):
How's the ricola and the mezcal and.

>> (02:43):
Good old gal Carrie Ann.

>> Speaker C (02:45):
Hola.

>> (02:47):
So fabulous to have you both join me again.
Now, uh, Michael is the author of something like
14 cocktail books now a little bit less, but
yeah, most notably the Garden to
Glass, one of my favorites.
Carrie Ann is always talking alcohol on her
blog, which is called six one Straight up six hundred fifteen.
And she has, ah, many other projects in the works as well.

(03:10):
You can check out those details on our show
notes as well. Our
sip segments are all about wine, distilled
spirits, tea and coffee. It is,
uh, agave time.

(03:31):
And this is our Agave 101
episode. Lots of things come from this
plant, uh, which is a bit like aloe,
but we're going to focus on agave
plants, uh, used with alcohol.
Now the short list is tequila,
mezcal, but there are a few things maybe you did not
know in this 101 discussion.

(03:53):
I know that I've learned a lot of things just
in the basic research for this episode.
I'm just, uh, going to apologize in advance for
butchering the pronunciation of these
brands. All of these lovely towns and
states in Mexico, all of these
nice Spanish words that this good ol boy simply

(04:14):
cannot hold my R's well
enough. I flunked out a Spanish in
the 9th grade and nearly all of the Spanish I know
was acquired from working at El
Chico as a bartender.
Try El Chico's noisy new
fajitas.

>> Speaker C (04:33):
We're really cooking now.

>> (04:37):
Well, let's get to some agave.
Feeling rather wild and
to, uh, get us going actually is going to be, uh,
good old gal Carrie Ann.

>> Speaker C (04:57):
So romantic. We're just going
to dive into agave.
The plant itself is grown all over the
world with over 300 varieties
and 200 of them grow in
Mexico. Some of those other, uh, global
locations are Australia, South Africa
and across the southwest of the United

(05:20):
States. Agaves thrive in hot arid
climates with well draining soil, making them
suitable for regions experiencing drought
or water scarcity. Agave can be
used for biofuel, ecological
Restoration and CO2 capture.
Here are the basic parts of this plant.

(05:41):
The four major edible parts of the agave are
the flowers, the leaves, the
stalks or basil, rosettes and the
SAP. In Spanish they call that
aguamiel, meaning honey, water.
One more important element is how this plant
reproduces. All varieties of agave
reproduce sexually. Agaves are

(06:04):
monocarpic, meaning they flower once towards the
end of their life cycle.
Uh, the primary pollinators of agave are
nectar eating bats and then
hummingbirds and hawk's moths also
help them cross pollinate.
Upon flowering, the agave will send
all of its sugars up into the

(06:26):
quiyot, or flowering stalk to
fuel its reproduction. Uh, once
the plant has flowered, it cannot be used any longer to
produce, um, mezcal of any
sort, as all the good stuff goes to the
flower and then it dies. So producers,
um, are

(06:46):
harvesting the uh, agave plant just right
before it flowers and getting as much of
the sugars as they can, uh, into
those pinas.
So the heart of the plant is the pina. And this
is what we use exclusively for producing
the tequila, mezcal, sotol, riccia, uh,

(07:07):
and bacchanora. Each of these various
versions of alcohol also trace back to,
uh, different parts of Mexico.
There have been concerted efforts to define
label and production. The
general. Here we go with pronunciations.
The General Directorate of Norms,

(07:28):
uh, within the Secretariat of the Economy of
Mexico is the ultimate Authority of the
domain of origin. Certifying
bodies and verifiers are authorized by the
Mexican government to evaluate and certify
do products. The most well known
certifying body is the
Consejo Regulador del

(07:50):
Mezcal CRM. The
compulsory standards and regulations
for mezcal and tequila are defined in
the Norma Official Mexicana.
So let's get a drink in. Yes,
we're going to start off with a sotol, which is

(08:10):
generally from the Chihuahua, Coahuila
and Durango regions. And
this is a cousin of the agave plant.
It, um, was widely considered an agave for quite a
long time until they did some DNA research and
decided it was a cousin and not
an exact, uh, species of it.

(08:30):
It's sometimes called desert spoon plant
or the more technical term,
Michael Dazzlerian. That
one. So the one we're tasting today
is La Pulga. And uh,
side note, my friend Ali Ochoa put this
brand together as their head of spirits and

(08:50):
master blunder out of Texas.

>> (08:55):
And it's fairly new. Uh, this particular sotol is,
is near the market. Mike won't tell us all about this.

>> Speaker D (09:01):
This is La, uh, pulga sotal silver,
80 proof. This is from the Chihuahua region, so
central Mexico. The producer describes this
as notes of earthy herbal
tones blended with hints of citrus and a touch of
smoky sweetness, creating a smooth and
balanced finish.

>> Speaker C (09:22):
I just think it's just such a beautiful example of
the pure agave, just that crisp agave
flavor.

>> (09:30):
Yeah, I really thought it's a great on ramp and a
really great place to start. I would almost say that,
um, intentionally, if you are
just getting into agave spirits, this is a
terrific place to start. Um,
you know, my tasting notes here for this particular
sital is it's very sweet and floral on the
nose. Um, it's very sweet up front.

(09:53):
Uh, there's some pepper. It's very subdued. Um,
and uh, I love this sweet pepper finish off this.
How about you, Mike?

>> Speaker D (10:00):
Yeah, I got some cool mint, uh, mint and
celery, some herbaceous stuff going on. And I
really liked how clean it was on the nose and how
like you get like a lot of great agave,
uh, spirits, the really clean ones. You get like notes of like
the ocean and.

>> Speaker C (10:16):
Mhm.

>> Speaker D (10:17):
And it's like standing by the ocean breeze.

>> Speaker C (10:20):
Terroir I think, comes across an agave more than any other
spirit, personally.

>> (10:26):
Yeah, no, I agree. Um, I actually made a
margarita, you know, from scratch last
night with this and I loved it. Um, I
thought it was really, really cool. So well,
our SIPs rating here, uh, um, for the
Satal is actually going to be a 4.

>> Speaker C (10:44):
That's classified.

>> (10:47):
So really fabulous. Um, and a
great buy.

>> Speaker C (10:51):
Well done, Ali.

>> (10:53):
We'll be right back right after this message.
Hey, welcome back to Sip, Suds and Smokes. And
this is our Agave 101 episode.
And yet we started by tasting, not quite
agave. Um, so the satol from,
uh, La Puga.

>> Speaker C (11:15):
It means the flea.

>> (11:17):
Okay. All righty. We're gonna shift
to, uh, two of the more popular versions of agave
spirit, which are actually tequila and Mezcal.
And, um, Michael's gonna cover, uh, all about tequila here
for us. So.

>> Speaker D (11:33):
Yeah, so we're gonna start with tequila, which is very popular, but
I'm gonna going to toss in, uh, some things you probably don't
know. Tequila is from the agave plant
and one variety, blue Weber agave.
Tequila can only be legally produced in certain regions
of Mexico, specifically Jalisco
and parts of Guanajuato,
Michoquan, Nayarit,

(11:56):
and Tamalupas.
Tamalipas.

>> Speaker C (12:00):
What he said.

>> Speaker D (12:02):
Jalisco is the primary production area,
particularly the area around Tequila
Arandas and the highlands. Los Altos.
Agave plants mature slowly, taking seven to 10
years to develop the sugars in the pina, that is the heart
or the core, which are essential for tequila
production. The production of quality tequila
involves several steps, each affecting the flavor

(12:24):
and profile. Step one, cultivate
the agave plant only in regions
with a doctor.
Selecting quality agave, uh, plants. Cultivation
begins with planting healthy huelos
or baby agave plants, which take about seven to ten
years to mature. Tequilas made from

(12:45):
well tended, mature plants yield richer flavors.
Step two, harvest the agave plant. Once the
pina is mature,
agave plants are harvested only when fully
mature, which is again, uh, seven to ten
years. Selection
process. Premium tequilas use mature plants, while younger

(13:07):
agave may result in milder flavors.
For step three, we cook the agave plant,
bake it, or steam it to caramelize the
sugars. Use brick ovens
or hornos, which is a traditional slow cooking method
that produces caramelized flavors over 24 to
48 hours. Then

(13:28):
there's the autoclaves, high pressure steam
ovens that cut cooking time to 7 to 12 hours,
preserving more green vegetal notes.
You have, uh, diffusers
industrial method, where agave is shredded before
cooking, rapidly, extracting sugars but yielding
milder flavors. The application here can

(13:49):
vary by distillery. Diffusers use water
in high pressures to, to shred,
uh, but they also use let's see, Let me go back.
Diffusers use water in high pressure to shred, but
also to use some of that water at high temp to essentially
boil the tequila, which softens the fibers enough
to extract the sugars, but doesn't release as much

(14:10):
sugar, as much flavor from the sugars.
For step four, you crush the agave plant where
you're going to extract the juice right out of the
pina using the tohona or a
stone wheel, which is a volcanic stone wheel that crushes
agave preserves all those complex flavors.
Uh, there's roller mills and mechanical shredders that shred

(14:32):
and press agave quickly, resulting in lighter flavors.
Then step five, ferment the juice. The yeast.
Convert the juice into alcohol. They'll
use open, uh, air fermentation is one way where the
traditional method using open vats
that encourages wild yeast growth, which adds
complex terroir driven flavors.

(14:53):
Not exclusive to wild yeast, uh,
but it increases evaporation. The increased
evaporation can lead to lighter aromas
and it's a more controlled environment for
temperature.
They also use closed fermentation with added
yeast. Quicker and more consistent way

(15:13):
to do it. But less complex in flavor.
You get more concentrated aromas. It can
sometimes overheat. And the closed
fermentation tends to be less vulnerable to losing flavor
in its controlled vats or tanks.
Can still be really complex in flavor.

>> (15:30):
Really.

>> Speaker D (15:31):
That depends on whether it's being fermented in oak or
stainless steel. With agave
fibers tends to operate similarly to a closed
fermentation system. The fibers create a seal over the top
of the fermented juices while also making it susceptible
to nearby agriculture like fruit trees and
flowers. Fermentation
with agave fibers which adds earthy

(15:53):
flavors and richness.
Variables in that are open or closed systems.
With or without fibers. Wild or natural yeast.
With all you can control the, uh,
preferred aroma and flavor.
Distill the alcohol. The alcohol is distilled
twice to produce clear silver tequila.

(16:16):
Copper pot stills are common in small batch
production, providing rich and smooth
flavor. Copper is a catalyst for chemical
reactions that remove sulfur compounds and
undesirable flavors from the distillate. This
helps produce a smoother, cleaner spirit.
In stainless steel stills you'll get neutral, uh,

(16:36):
flavors ideal for making really large
batches. Commonly also a type
of continuous distillation which can often be the reason the
spirit ends up with a neutral flavor.
Each column holds panels which are placed intentionally to
correct an undesired characteristic which
is subject to the master distiller's preference

(16:58):
Double distillation standard for tequila, which
ensures purity. Some tequilas undergo
a third distillations for extra smoothness.
Step seven. That's the aging process. Tequila is
aged in oak barrels to develop flavor and color.
The containers can vary from as small as 200 liter

(17:18):
barrels, which is more commonly used for craft tequila
producers, to
20,000 liter
Pepones, aka large oak vats,
often used by mass producing companies.
Okay, here are those very common terms that you usually need when
describing a tequila product. Blanco

(17:39):
that's unaged or lightly rested. For pure
agave flavors, they can technically be
aged up to two months. Anything over two
months would be a reposado. Most companies
just don't find it necessary to even use the term
blanco.
Reposado, which has aged at least two months.
Adding mild oak notes, you

(18:01):
also have anejo. Anejo is aged at least
one year, yielding richer, uh,
more complex flavors. There's also
extra anejo which is aged
three years or more, resulting in deep, nuanced
flavors. Authentic tequila must
adhere to strict Mexican regulations to
protect, to protect its quality and

(18:23):
consistency. Denomination of
origin or do. Only
tequila produced in designated
regions. Jalisco and parts of
Guanajuato, Mishoacan, Nayarit and
Tamaulipas can be labeled as
tequila. The Tequila Regulatory
Council, the CRT ensures standards

(18:45):
for authenticity and quality are met.
CRT regulation limits all tequila production to
the use of additives. A max of 1%
of total volume can be added. Any more
would need to be stated on the bottle.
The CRT recently began to provide additive free
tequilas with the seal, but that's still in the very beginning

(19:06):
stages. Tequila Norma Official
Mexicana or nom. Each
certified tequila has a NOM number on its label
guaranteeing its origin and quality.

>> (19:18):
Thanks, Mike. I really appreciate going over,
um, uh, a lot of the process,
you know, for creating tequilas because, you
know, it's really these regimented steps that really,
you know, a lot of people count on.
Um, and a lot of those modern techniques are
probably the most dominant, you know, characteristics, whether

(19:38):
using autoclaves or shredders. So hey, we'll be right
back right after this message.

(19:59):
Hey, welcome back to Sip Suds and Smokes.
Uh, today's episode is an Agave
101 episode and we just went over some
background about tequila and all the production
techniques, um, that are, ah,
regimented, you know, as part of the process of uh,
producing tequila very consistently.
So Carrie Ann's going to tell us about the product we're going to go over, which is

(20:21):
A Punta Agave.

>> Speaker C (20:22):
Punta Agave. Um, but first I wanted to mention
that, ah, one of the types of
tequila we didn't mention is a Crystallino. Um, and more
of those are coming out on the market now. And that's basically
an agave tequila that's been filtered, ah,
to remove, ah, that color from the
barrel, um, and just put back out as

(20:44):
clear spirit. But it'll be labeled
Crystallino so that, you know that it actually has
been aged. It's just removed the color,
uh, from the barrel, FYI.
Um, so this tequila that we're tasting,
uh, is punt agave. And
tequila is a very regulated product
where, um, everything that goes into it is

(21:07):
very defined. So all of the conforming
elements make it easier for consumers
to navigate those labels. The
nom or nom on the label is the key to
unlock specifically who distilled that product.
Uh, there might be a nom that is producing
86 different labels. So you can kind of

(21:27):
trace back and find out where your,
ah, specific brand is coming from. Um,
so now it's time for more drinking, less teaching.
We have gone for a craft producer, punt
agave. And, um, this is
just a, ah, 100% blue agave
tequila. It is a

(21:47):
gorgeous little example of that
agave. Uh, this one is produced,
uh, out of jalisco. It is
80 proof. It is 100%
agave. It is, um,
baked in an autoclave and the juice is
extracted via, uh, a roller mill.

>> (22:08):
Crushed.

>> Speaker D (22:10):
Crushed.

>> (22:11):
Uh, what are your tasting notes on this?

>> Speaker C (22:16):
I, I would, I would go back to saying this is just a
really great example of the agave. You can really taste the
difference between what the soto brings into the spirit and what
blue agave brings into the spirit with these two.

>> (22:28):
So, you know, um, a lot
fuller body. You know, I think in, uh,
in tequila itself. And, uh,
the intensity of the peppers are definitely
a lot more pronounced. Um, it's a very
sweet nose. Um, I wrote the. Actually, it's a
lot of sugar and peppers in the mid palate.
Um, you know, it's, uh, it's just

(22:51):
super squeaky clean is the way I would
describe it more than anything. There's just like, it's got such a
beautiful nose getting in the way. You know, it's
literally a blank canvas is the way I would describe
it.

>> Speaker D (23:02):
Yeah, a great example of a really pure
expression of agave from
where it comes from.

>> Speaker C (23:10):
I mean, there are some tequilas that they add the
glycerin and it really fills up your mouth. This
has such a beautiful mouth feel, knowing that it's not
glycerin, and it's just. It's
gorgeous.

>> Speaker D (23:21):
Yeah, I got some nice sage, uh, citrus
rind notes, and then a little bit of olive towards the end, which
was really cool.

>> (23:30):
Tequila martini sips rating here for the, uh,
Punta Gahe is going to be a four.

>> Speaker C (23:36):
That's classified.

>> (23:40):
All right, so, uh, we're going to swing around and talk
about one of the more another popular, uh, style
of agave spirits, which is mezcal.
Uh, so, uh, I'm going to share with you, you know, some of the,
uh, background here on this as well.

>> Speaker C (23:55):
I'm just going to argue for a minute that everything we're tasting is a
mezcal, and tequila is a type of mezcal, and
move on.

>> (24:02):
That's okay, I guess.
Nothing wrong with that.
One of the issues that frustrates consumers
is navigating such variety with
mezcal. I think one of the most common
misconceptions is that all

(24:22):
mezcal is smoked, and that is just
simply not true. The best way I can tell
people to approach mezcal is akin to
wine. Every season brings a different
harvest, and the terroir, or
the slope of the land alone can heavily
influence flavor profiles. That means that
things taste different at the bottom of the hill than they

(24:45):
do at the top of the hill. So
mezcals are typically blended in a batch,
and there are huge variations with each b.
So if you think about wine where the terroir,
the harvest, and the blend all create a designation
of that winemaker's blend,
um, and, um, for

(25:06):
mezcal, it'd be called a maestro, and then all
of that moves to be called a vintage.
Now, to make it even more challenging, some of the yields
are very small, meaning that you'll taste a mezcal to
find that.
Hmm.
I really love this. And yet
there's very little of it. And you'll likely
not find another bottle of it after that as

(25:28):
well. I also think it's why most restaurants
don't put mezcal on the menu because of this
variation, which doesn't always make for a good
dining experience. And yet
it is, oh, so worth the chase, just like
wine. Now, oddly,
the first thing I lean into, uh, with mezcal when
I talk about it is the production process. You know, there's only

(25:51):
a handful of things to remember, and there's
basically only three designations. So
the first one is just called mezcal, uh,
which means it's actually coming from a domain of origin
designated, uh, for mezcal. Now,
I'm going to butcher, um, at least half of these
towns, uh, so, um, feel

(26:12):
free to get a good laugh going. Well, the first one I got
Oaxaca. Then there's
Guerrero, uh, uh,
Guanto Michikan,
uh, Zakatis. Boy,
I butchered that one. Really good. Saint, uh, Louis
Potosi, uh, Tama, La Paz,

(26:33):
Durango, and Pueblo. Go ahead,
laugh it up. You can, um, I'll wait here.
The next one is called Mezcal
Artisanal. This means that
mostly the process is actually not using modern
technology or methods. Now, the cooking, the
pina can be with an autoclave, uh,

(26:55):
but the still has to still be with
copper, uh, or clay. And the
maceration of the cooked pena itself
can be with the maceration mill.
And then the final designation is called
Mezcal Artisanal.
I'm sorry. Mezcal Ancestral.

(27:15):
Wow.
Um, now I call this the donkey walk
version, uh, because you're going to strip
away nearly anything modern.
Uh, a donkey actually pulls a tejona to
crush the pina. And all of the heat
is with firewood or some other
natural fuel like peat. Uh,

(27:37):
think of this as making alcohol in the middle of a
field, close to some water source at best.
And that should paint the picture of just how low tech
this method would be.
Now, I know you begin to think that
the old ways are the best ways, and
probably not. I've seen the donkey

(27:58):
droppings getting mashed into the pinion itself. So
while it has lots of. How would you describe
this character? So, um, listen,
there's no FDA in the middle of the field,
uh, to declare what is. Ah, that
looks sort of sanitary.
Um, and I think the quality of the ancestral
version changes from one donkey to

(28:20):
the next. You know, is it Juan's donkey or
Pepe's donkey? There
are, uh, three designations for age as
well. So, um, they're a little
bit different than, uh, tequila. So, uh, here they
are. First one is havan,
um, which means young or

(28:41):
unaged. The second one you recognize really
quick because it's nearly the same, which is reposado,
um, which means that it's been aged for at
least two months and sometimes called
rested instead of aged. And
the final aging, uh, designation
is for anejo
mezcals. And those are aged for

(29:03):
more than, uh, 13 months.
So, you know, I think the one thing that I'd like them
to add, you know, to the label would be
actually, you know, the designation of the
terroir. Um, you know, it's kind of
difficult to trace whether you're harvesting like from the
top of the hill or, you know, the bottom of the

(29:24):
hill. So I get that you know, why it's kind
of difficult to keep track of those kinds of things, but it
would be some good information as well.
Well, we're going to, uh, taste some Nescal, um,
and, um, you know, I've picked this one,
um, because they've partially solved a lot of the
variation in the branding. So what's

(29:46):
in the bottle? And so that product, uh,
is going to come up right after this break
and it is called Elegant.
Hey, we'll be right back after this break.
Hey, welcome back to Sip Suds and Smokes. And on
today's episode, we are going over Agave

(30:06):
Spirits 101. And I just covered
some background on Mezcal
and we're actually going to go over a product Carrie Anne is going
to introduce.
Illegal for us.

>> Speaker C (30:18):
Iligao is probably the most widely
available of Mezcals, uh,
across this country for sure. Uh, and
even really popular in restaurants. So, um, this is
one you should be able to find locally no
matter where you are. Um, it is
100% espadine
agave and sourced near the

(30:40):
Tiacula de
Matamoros.

>> (30:46):
Sounds good.

>> Speaker C (30:46):
That's great.
The, the brand describes
exactly. The brand describes this as full bodied
agave flavor, light smoke and lingering
heat with eucalyptus and mineral
aromas. Complements of
green apple, fresh citrus and red
chiltepe. I don't know what that tastes like since

(31:09):
I don't know what it is. Um, I would say it's,
it's, it's lightly smoky. And if
you ever taste a super smoky Mezcal, it's probably
because they're covering up some bad
production practices.
Um, it shouldn't taste like smoke.
It should have. Should you. You might know that it's in there,
but it shouldn't be. The number one taste, shouldn't be the.

>> (31:30):
Dominant thing that jumps out at you. Mike, what'd you think about
this?

>> Speaker D (31:33):
I thought it was good. I got a lot of cool,
um, grassy notes and
some rosemary. I like that the, the
brand calls out eucalyptus. Um, I got more of
a rosemary and some like, orange.
So super complex, really cool.

>> Speaker C (31:50):
I mean, espadine in general is going to be the,
um, the type of agave most
Mezcals on commercial market are. Although you can
find some of the other ones we'll talk about later. But this one's
everywhere.

>> (32:03):
Quick, uh, run. In my own tasting, it's very peppery and
floral on the nose. Um, I got a lot of
Pepper and earth, you know, uh, up front as well.
I couldn't describe anything other than
the mid palate is like tasting silly Putty. I
don't know. Um, there's.
I'm sure there's a better description of it, but,

(32:24):
um, that peppery finish definitely, you know, stayed around, you
know, there for sure. All right.

>> Speaker C (32:29):
Picking up a little bit from the oak from being rusted, but
it's, um.

>> (32:33):
It'S not nothing that's slow, you know,
slamming you over the head in this at all.
Well, our SIPs rating here for illegal
reposado is going to be a three.

>> Speaker C (32:44):
Interesting.

>> (32:46):
Mike's going to tell us a little bit more about,
um, the, uh, elements of
Mezcal and, uh, talking
about some of the various agave plants that
also. That can be.

>> Speaker C (33:02):
Yummy.

>> Speaker D (33:05):
Vader. So there are
these designations we've been discussing, but even then
each producer is doing something a little different, like putting the
type of agave, uh, agave on the back label
or the nom also on the back label instead of on
the side of the bottle. Let's break this down to some
categories. Where is this distilled? This is usually

(33:25):
the nom designation. Uh, you might see city
of origin, variety of agave, Agave
maturity, older is better. Most of the time,
time in the oven. That depends on weather, season,
method. This is about not under or over
cooking. And then you might see some of the grinding method.
Usually this aligns with the designation of the

(33:46):
Mezcal, artisanal or
ancestral. And then you might see the batch
number as well. If I had to add something to mix
it up, it would be maestro. I have the same beef with
wine. Who made this? Who blended this?
One topic we should cover is the huge range of agave used
with Mezcal. Espadine is the most widely used

(34:06):
with about 80% by volume.
That 20% can mean a lot of variation.
If I had to use a comparison, it would be Scotch. With these
huge ranges from the highlands to the Islay
0 Pete to tons of Pete. To make this just a little
more fun, there's the scientific name and then maybe several
common names. There are more than 30 different

(34:26):
agave varieties used with Mezcal. Don't
panic. We're only going to talk about a few.
All right, so Mexicano, the scientific name. Agave,
rhodocantha. Other common names,
Espadillon, Xtero, Amarillo
and Quiche. Mexicano agave
is revered for its large size, relative scarcity,

(34:47):
vivid green hue and kaleidoscopic
spray of rigid, tightly spaced leaves.
In some Oaxacan towns, it's called quiche, a name
otherwise reserved for agave.
Karwinsky Mexicano makes full bodied
mezcals, fruity and smoky as well.
Mexicano is very special. They make very smooth
mezcals with the touch of anise. We also

(35:09):
have Aroquino, scientific name
Agave Americana. Other common names
being Sierra Negra, Serrano,
Cerruto and coyote. There are
many subspecies of Agave Americana that vary in
appearance but share certain qualities.
Araqueno usually refers to the
oxykensis variety, but terminology can differ

(35:30):
depending on the region. These huge agaves
can be 8ft tall and 11ft around, with
pinas ranging from 200 to more than
450 pounds. For producers, this can
mean as many as 30 bottles of mezcal per plant.
The strong cooked agave flavor shows through
with layered herbs and spices. Now, these can
be intense, but compared to espadine, their sweetness

(35:52):
is much less obvious.
Karwinski, we talked about that one a second ago. The
scientific name is Agave Karwinski. Other
common names being Madraquish,
Biquish, Quiche,
Tobaziche, Baril
cereal. Karwinskis are easily
identified by their pinas, which resemble long narrow

(36:14):
logs of hardwood rather than plump pineapples. There
are several subspecies used for mezcal
whose common names vary, but all fall under the distinctive
Karwinski umbrella. These mezcals have
flavors of herbs and roasted vegetables, often
with a prominent note of peanut butter.
Baril, for example, an especially large and long lived
Karwinsky, is a very complex, dry and

(36:37):
elegant, with notes of citrus peel.
We also have tepestate,
the scientific name Agave
marmorata. Other common names include
Pichamel and Pichameto.
Tepestate has an almost mythical reputation being that
agave that takes the longest to reach maturity, up

(36:58):
to 35 years in the wild.

>> Speaker C (37:01):
Wow.

>> Speaker D (37:02):
It also has very low yield. More than three times
the amount of tepestate is needed to make the equivalent amount
of mezcal as aspedine. It usually has a
rich, earthy aroma, but with notes of ripe tropical fruit
as well. Tepestate is the most aromatic
of all mezcals. It absorbs so much character
from the soil and even the other plants around it.

>> (37:23):
Carrie Ann is going to tell us about our last product real quick and
we're probably going to rate it as we are playing off
here. Go ahead.

>> Speaker C (37:30):
It's Corte Vettitust.
No, Vatusto. Vatusto.
Here we go. Um, so this is a
94 proof artisanal
mezcal. It is the ensemble. Um,
4A. Ah, premium small batch Mezcal.
Meticulously handcrafted by
maestro mezcalero Juan Carlos

(37:52):
Gonzalez. The unique blends. Com.
This unique blend combines equal parts of
maguey, espadin, tobala and
tepestate.

>> (38:02):
Well, we're going to leave it right there with our SIPs rating for this
is going to be actually a five. So
great, uh, product.

>> Speaker C (38:10):
Oh my goodness. Yes, yes,
yes, yes.

>> (38:15):
Well, hopefully everybody learned something about
agave today and the various, uh,
versions of agave. I really hope you enjoyed
this 101 episode. I want to thank my co host
for being here today. Carrie Ann, tell us all about your
blog and how people can catch up with you.

>> Speaker C (38:33):
Less blogging these days. Um, but
have some really big news dropping soon, so catch me
at straightup615 on insta.

>> (38:42):
Good old boy Michael, tell us about Liquid Gold, your
books and everything else you got going on.

>> Speaker D (38:47):
Yeah, my books you can
find@mikewolfbooks.com. uh, just did
a really fun project with chef Brian Baxter, the
catbird seat. Uh, commemorating 10 years of the
catbird seat here in Nashville.

>> Speaker C (38:58):
So beautiful.

>> Speaker D (38:59):
Um, yeah, you can find, uh, liquid Gold at
Liquidgold show.

>> (39:03):
Thank you so much for being here. Well, thanks for joining
this episode. I'm going to ask you to
keep on sipping.

>> Announcer (39:12):
We hope you enjoyed this episode. If
you're listening to us online, do yourself a favor
and tap. Just tap the subscribe button.

>> Speaker C (39:20):
Give it a little tappy, tap, tap,
taparoo.

>> Announcer (39:24):
The easiest way to listen to our show is to ask Siri,
Alexa, Google, Uncle Larry or whoever it
is that talks to you on your phone play podcast. Sip,
Suds and Smokes. We love your feedback
and you can reach us at
info@sipsudsandsmokes.com
our tasting notes flow out on Twitter and Instagram with
our handle at Sip, Suds and smokes. And

(39:45):
our Facebook page is always buzzing with lots of
news. You'll also be able to interact with the
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of other fans on those social media platforms.
Do us a favor, take the time to rate this episode. If you're
listening to us online, that's a big help to us and we
get to see your feedback as well. Come back,

(40:07):
join us for another episode and keep on
sipping.
This has been a one tan hand production of

(40:27):
Sips, Suds and Smokes, a program devoted
to the appreciation of some of the finer slices
of life from the dude in the basement studios,
your host, the good old boys. We'll see you all.

>> Speaker C (40:39):
Next time,
Sam.
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