That worm at the bottom of your Mezcal is not a total lie.
I drank too much while in Mexico City.At the bottom of some bottles, you may find a worm, as I remembered through the haze.I wondered if the rumors were true.People told me that the worm has mystical powers.It has hallucinogenic properties and will make you drunk.
People who repeat these things are usually trying to get someone to eat the worm, and they are lying.According to science, the brilliant marketer who spread the word that mezcal with the worm is different was actually telling the truth.
A number of scientific papers about the chemical have been published by Antonio De Len Rodrguez.
His pride in the liquor is as clear as the drink itself.He told me that he published an article in the local newspaper Pulso titled "Mezcal from Potosi: a very Mexican drink" because it was a local product.
Mezcal is a transparent liquor made from a desert plant.It is produced by roasting and mashing the heart of the Agave plant, then combining it with water and allowing it to ferment in barrels.The flavors can range from stingingly bitter to smooth and smoky.A second ferment can raise the alcohol percentage up to 55 percent for the aejo variety.
Mezcal can be made from any number of plants, but only blue Agave is used to make tequila.The origin of the two liquors is different; Mezcal is from the southern state of Oaxaca, while the more northern city of Tequila is the birthplace of tequila.
According to De Len, there are similarities and differences between mezcal and tequila."Tequila and Mezcals have the same components, but they can have differences in how much they contain," he said.Some of the ingredients can affect the smell and taste.
He and his colleagues looked at the worm, the gusano, after determining the best temperature for mezcal's fermentation in another study.
When the liquor is bottled, the worm is added at the end of the production process.The maguey worm is a caterpillar with red and white varieties added to Mezcal.It is also used in Mexican cuisine.You will start to notice that the low-end bottles have the worm floating ominously at the bottom if you have been around enough.
There is still debate about the legend of the worm.Around the time American tourists started to get hooked on the stuff, it was appearing in commercial bottles.Some stories claim that the worm was added to bottles of Mezcal to show its purity.The percentage of alcohol in the spirit is high enough to preserve the worm, according to the Beverage Testing Institute.;
Cynics think it's due to marketing.One of the first companies to include the worm in its product was Nacional Vinicola.Jacobo Pez is said to have come up with the idea.It appears both exotic and traditional, and gives dudes a testing ground for their masculinity.