After celebrating Pi Approximation Day a couple of days ago, it’s appropriate that we have a day to wash down all that “Pi.” Well, today’s the day — National Tequila Day. Mexicans like to celebrate National Tequila Day — but — so do a lot of other people , all around the world. No matter that tequila can only be made in a few regions of Mexico, its day can (and really should be) celebrated by just about everyone.
Humans have been making something like tequila for at least a couple of thousand years. As early as 150 B.C., a predecessor of tequila, called “pulque” was thought to have been made by civilizations predating the ancient Aztecs.
Tequila is made from the agave plant. Like wine, the type of soil the plant is grown in can impact the taste of the final product. But, unlike wine or other drinks made from fruit, once the agave plant is used to make tequila, it’s finished — it can’t be reused.
To qualify as “tequila,” at least 51% of the product must be derived from the blue agave plant that is prevalent in Mexico. A lot tequila today is made from 100% blue agave. These tequilas are typically higher quality and cost more than the mixed versions.
Tequila is like some other alcoholic beverages, like champagne, cognac, bourbon, etc., in that it can only be called tequila if it is made in a certain place — in the case of tequila, this place is Mexico.
In 2018, National Tequila Day was officially recognized by the Mexican government.
Regular agave and blue agave plants have different flavors. Standard agave is used in sweeteners, but not in tequila.
Tequila can be used to create small, artificial diamonds — which are often used in the electronics industry.
More than 300 million agave plants are grown and harvested each year to produce tequila throughout Mexico.
So an alcoholic beverage that’s this interesting and tastes this good in a margarita certainly deserves its own day — Happy National Tequila Day.
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