Does the water matter in Mezcal and Tequila?

Okay, so, first … yes, of course, water matters. Without water, there can’t be Mezcal or Tequila, both because you need it to make the spirits but more importantly, people make these spirits and without water, there are no people. With that out of the way … evolutionary biologist and frequent Roadtripper Daniel Moen checked in to ask, Why does water matter in Tequila and Mezcal? I immediately went to my old trope: About half the bottle or more is water. But then he followed up with, The water you're consuming when you drink Mezcal, that fifty percent is actually distilled water. And distilled water, by definition, is neutral. So … why does it matter? Or does it not? We wade into the issue in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with wisdom from Daniel Mohn, Eduardo Angeles of Lalocura, and Ari Marks and Michael Schallau of is/was Brewing.

Episode Notes

Thanks to Miguel Dimayuga Meneses for the cover photo of El Choforo working on the well project in Atempa, Guerrero — a project funded by SACRED Agave through a grant from 818 Tequila.

Shout outs this episode to Fiji water, Felipe Camarena of G4 Tequila, and the bio-digester project of Serafin Morales Cruz of Mezcal Alarii!

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