Mezcal is the Grandma of Tequila, and has been produced since the mid 16th century.
What’s the difference between Mezcal and Tequila, like wine and scotch, it’s about regions. Tequila agave has to be from Jalisco, Mexico and this is the only agave used to make tequila.
Tequila is make from Blue Agave or Weber Agave. The plant favors altitudes of more than 1,500 metres (5,000 ft) and grows in rich and sandy soils.
Mezcal flavor profile is very different because it is typically smokier.
The laws that regulate the production of mezcal, known as NORMA, designate five species of agave that are used for its creation: Agave angustifolia (espadin), A. asperrima (maguey de cerro), A. weberi (maguey de mezcal), A. petatorum (tobala), and A. salmiana (maguey verde o mezcalero) — but it also states that any agave with the proper sugar content that grows within the eight regions of production can be used as well. There are over 200 known species of agave that grow within Mexico, and around 30 to 50 of them are believed to be used to produce mezcal.
Mezcal is produced in nine different areas of Mexico. The include include Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas, Michoacán, Puebla and Oaxaca, which is where upwards of 85 percent of all mezcal is made.
Tequila is typically produced by steaming the agave inside industrial ovens before being distilled two or three times in copper pots. Mezcal, on the other hand, is cooked inside earthen pits that are lined with lava rocks and filled with wood and charcoal before being distilled in clay pots. While some large-scale mezcal producers have adopted modern methods, artisanal mezcal makers continue to use this more traditional method, which is the source of the smokiness commonly associated with mezcal.
Agave maturation times:
Espadín - 7 -9 years
Mexicano - 7- 9 years
Aroqueño - 9 - 13 years
Coyote - 5 - 8 years
Sierra Negra 15 -20 Years
Tobalá - 8 - 15 Years