____Tomorrow is National Tequila Day, so stay tuned because I'll be bringing you the most delicious selection of tequila cocktails to show the world that tequila can be elegant and sophisticated, not a synonymous with college hangovers. Besides, tequila has an amazing history. Looking here and there, I found these tequila facts that drew my attention. Read on and find out more about this very Latino potent potable.
Read more ¿Qué más?: This spicy strawberry, avocado & grilled corn salsa will make everyone in your familia happy
-
Tequila is a distilled from blue agave grown in the vicinity of the city of Tequila, northeast of Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco.
-
Under Mexican law, only blue agave distillates, produced in Jalisco, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit and Tamaulipas can be called tequila.
-
Tequila is protected by an Appellation of Origin Controlled, a seal that certifies its origin and quality.
-
The Aztecs drank fermented agave long before the Spanish conquistadors arrived in 1521. They called it octili puliqhue. Later the Spanish called it pulque.
-
In the 16th Century,tequila was already produced in the area where in 1666 the city of Tequila was founded.
-
Around 1600, at the Hacienda Cuisillos, Don Pedro Sánchez de Tagle, Marquis of Altamira and who is known as the "Father of Tequila" began mass production of the distillate.
-
In 1758 King Ferdinand VI of Spain granted Don Antonio de Cuervo a lot of land to cultivate agave.
-
In 1795 King Charles IV of Spain granted the Cuervo family the first license for commercial production of tequila.
-
The rest is history and now every year in Mexico 300,000 blue agave plants are harvested. The planting and harvesting of the agave, is still a manual work and the jimadores pass their knowledge from generation to generation.
-
Although many tequila distilleries are independent Mexican companies, big brands are part of the portfolio of large global and multinational corporation controlling the beverage industry worldwide.
-
There are about 100 distilleries in Mexico producing about 900 brands of tequila. The business will continue to flourish since in 2006 there were over 2,000 trademarks.
-
There are two types of tequila: 100 percent agave and mixed, and they are bottled in five categories namely: white or silver, young or gold, reposado, añejo and extra aged. According to the Mexican Official Standard 2006, for a tequila to be called "extra añejo" or "ultra aged," must have been aged for three years.
-
In 2006, the company Tequila .925 entered the Guinness Book of Records for selling a liter of tequila for $225,000. Of course, the bottle containing the precious liquid weighed two kilos and was made of gold and platinum, the most expensive bottle of liquor in history.
Image via Enriqueta Lemoine
