But it is pronounced mescal. All mezcal comes from agave, but there are more than 30 different types of the spiky green plants growing throughout Mexico. Unfortunately, you'd be hard put to find a bottle of mezcal in the US that has a worm in . "Tequila and mezcals have most of the same components, like ethanol, ethyl acetate, heavy alcohols, etc., but they can have variations in how much they contain," he said. Most importantly, mezcal mustbe 100 percent agave, while tequila only needs to contain 51 percent agave. Have you noticed differences in bottles that have been open for extended periods of time? While the flavor of the mezcal does indeed change as it ages, the aging in glass tends to enhance what is already present, making the mezcal more balanced, integrated, and settled. What happens when you eat the worm in mezcal? In 2014, a studyin the Journal of Medicinal Foodsuggested that agave fructans prevented bone loss and encouraged formation of new bone by raising calcium concentrations in both bone and circulating blood. While dispelling myths, this is not a hallucinogenic spirit. I do notice subtle differences; however, Im at the point where I never want to waste my money on any expression that has an acetone, overly alcohol, or leathery smell, from the get go. However, some people do really enjoy eating the worm and others will be adamant in telling you that the little guy does give you special powers. People love to eat the worm live or roasted. "Now we're seeing triple-digit growth. Some of the ingredients in even smaller concentrations can affect the aromas and taste. Similar tasting notes but less pronounced. Through the haze, I remembered that mezcal is not tequila, and that, at the bottom of some bottles, you may find a worm. Cynics may chalk it up to marketing. Older commercialized mezcal brands have not deviated from the pack of new generation mezcal producers. How Tequila Differs From Mezcal Tequila and mezcal both originate from Mexico and are made from agave, a form of succulent that grows in the Mexican desert. This comes from the blending of a premium, 100% blue weber agave tequila with a 100% Espadn agave mezcal. Mexican Appetizers are a Delightful Way to Start Your Meal, What is Mezcal and What You Should Know About That Worm, The Truth About the Tequila Worm in the Bottom of the Bottle. I have 250s, 750s and 1L bottles. I dont understand how it locks it up that way, but when it does it seems to give it a really good structure. Mezcalero No. It has a little bag of salt sealed with it on the top. These larvae are the same worms that you can find floating at the bottom of mezcal bottles. The growing popularity of mezcal that is aged-in-glass clearly emphasizes the importance of time on how distilled agave can settle and build structure long after it has left the still. More balanced and mellow. Jonny. Because the worms are safe to consume, there are no known side effects from eating them. Have you ever thought about keeping a bottle sealed/unopened until some special day way in the future? By letting fresh air in every year or so, you are re-energizing the process.. Reasons Behind Adding Worms In Mezcal. It would be great if it did because stress is a problem many Americans grapple with every day. Fortune magazine reported that sales of mezcal rose 25 percent between 2014 and 2019, according to data fromIWSR, which tracks alcohol sales around the world. Mezcal is any ol' type of agave liquor. In Mexico, the gusano can be considered a delicacy when prepared properly. According to him, theres some sound science to the fact that mezcal would change over time, but we wanted some experiential evidence that it would indeed change for the better. For the aejo variety, a second fermentation can raise the alcohol percentage up to about 55 percent. To be clear, thats speculative. What I seek is the heart of the distillation, and less blended heads and tails to achieve the same alcohol content, given no dilution. Not to throw a fellow Chicagoan under the bus, but it appears this false narrative started with The Straight Dope columnist Cecil Adams in a 1999 piece. Honestly, nothing is certain regarding the inclusion of the worm, which is actually a moth's larva, but it does make the drinker seem like a toughie drinking it. The term "free radicals" gets thrown around a lot these days, but what exactly are they, why are they bad, and how could your choice to drink mezcal every night protect you from them? Stop. Your email address will not be published. It cemented the idea in the male western mind that Mezcal with a worm was in fact, the real Mezcal. A 2006 study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry found that all Mexican spirits distilled from agave, including mezcal, had high concentrations of oxalates. These meaty mezcals are still relatively hard to find in the United States, but several brands, including Del Maguey, El Jolgorio, Wahaka, and Rey Campero, offer pechuga-style options. In fact, as Mezcal PhD had posted, the air appears to help your mezcal become subjectively more enjoyable over time. While questions about the aging of mezcal in opened bottles is an active debate, the community seems decided on the aging of mezcal in closed (never-opened) bottles and/or in larger glass demijans. Legend has it thatan employee of the bottling plant, Jacobo Lozano Pez, came up with the idea. In short, the worm that you see in a bottle of mezcal was a marketing gimmick. Are gusanos a gimmick, a tradition, a resource to maximize flavor or one to mask imperfections in the mezcal? Jacobo Lozano Paez of Gusano Rojowas the brains behind the mezcal worm marketing ploy. In a 2006 paper published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Dr. Antonio De Len-Rodrguez and colleagues took a close look at the chemical makeup of mezcal. This belief seems to be held by many in the industry, and weve spoken to several users of this website who prefer to re-bottle their mezcal to a smaller glass bottle (like a dram or something similar) once the original bottle gets below that 25% threshold. The legend of the worm is still debated. Is it? When everyone who has a barn is firing up their still and making mezcal or tequila, how do you get people to buy yours? Those curious enough to try a mezcal can buy their own bottles from Wine . My theory is that the mezcal with gusano has its origin shortly after the Mexican Revolution, he says. The finish on this actually extended and was enhanced by the presence of the air in the bottle. It's fiery stuff, real rotgut, with a worm floating in the bottom of the bottle -- at least, that's what most people think. However, since the alcohol content of Mezcal and tequila is usually in the same range of 38% to 55% ABV, the shelf life of the two is roughly the same. Antonio De Len Rodrguez, a molecular biologist at the IPICYT (Instituto Potosino de Investigacin Cientfica y Tecnolgica) in San Luis Potos, Mexico,has published a number of scientific papers about the chemical makeup of mezcal. The answer to that question is a matter of quality, not safety, assuming proper storage conditions - when properly stored, a bottle of mezcal has an indefinite shelf life, even after it has been opened. If you do feel something after eating a mezcal worm it is a placebo effect. In parts of Guerrero, they'll occasionally throw one into a mezcal . According to Anthony Dias Blue's Complete Book of Spirits, that "worm" is actually a larva from one of two types of moths, known as maguey worms, that live on the agave plant. To further complicate the matter, tequila is a special type of mezcal. Free radicals are highly reactive atoms created when oxygen molecules inside the body split, as explained by Medical News Today. In the end, we found that our hypothesis was correct. And awesome. Greg is a lover of agave spirits, handicrafts, and barware. Worm salt, or sal de gusano in Spanish, is exactly what it sounds like. All the . It may also have been made before that, but it became far more generalized after the revolution. Limonene, one of the terpenes found in mezcal, could have cancer-fighting properties. In an interview with Bon Appetit, mezcal distiller Yola Jimenez pointed to mezcal's purity as the reason it causes fewer hangovers. Are you still interested in learning more? So, in addition to getting enough calcium, vitamin D, and exercise, you may want to consider deciding to drink mezcal every night to help strengthen your bones, especially if you're older. This seems to vary pretty widely, but many have a tradition or practice for dealing with low bottles. If you're struggling with hypertension, choosing to drink mezcal every night may help keep your blood pressure in check. Eating the worm has neither hallucinogenic nor aphrodisiac effects: but, if you have finished the entire Mezcal bottle to get the worm out and eat it, you are most likely unable to behave appropriately by this point. Although their experiment was performed on mice, it's possible that agave fructans could have the same impact on humans. But theres also a rich history of mezcaleros adding stuff to their mezcal, both during and after distillation. Shutterstock. There's often confusion about the difference between mezcal and tequila. So tequila is a type of mezcal, but mezcal is not tequila, and only mezcal has worms. As long as nothing was able to enter the bottle, it should be ok. Mongo only pawn in game of life, but this is a great topic. Well, there is a larva in most of the bottles of mezcal. It is produced by extracting the heart of the agave plant, roasting it and mashing it to a pulp, then combining it with water and allowing it to ferment in barrels. My question goes back to the aged in glass topic What if we have bottles that havent ever been opened, still sealed? And then theres xumilin. Overall, the Vago Elote showed slight differences between the two aged mezcals, but we all agreed that we preferred the Excess-air mezcal. Notes of white pepper, salt, corn nuts. Our theory was that the air in the original bottle would have some impact on the aromas, flavor, and complexity of the mezcal over time. The thought behind the gesture is that a high proof, high-quality spirit would preserve the insect and prevent it from rotting. Still, for this reason, choosing to drink mezcal every night in moderation, of course doesn't sound so bad. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. But eugenol, a terpene found in mezcal, could help combat the damage caused by free radicals. Tequila Semantics: Does Tequila Have A Worm In It Is The Worm In Tequila Alive Mezcal with a jar of worms First of all, does tequila have a worm in it? They found that limonene did possess anti-tumor effects, but this experiment was limited to cells grown in a laboratory. The worm is a moth larva, gusano de maguey. Id agreed that a 2yr experiment like this would probably provide more noticeable differences. On the other hand, a 2010 study published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology found that heavy consumption of alcohol in general has a pro-inflammatory effect throughout the body. The fact that mezcal is a clear spirit also plays a role. The fat and juices from the chicken add a savory undertone to the mezcal, while collagen from the meat gives it a more "robust mouthfeel.". The worm is the peanut butter to the Mezcal's jelly. One day, no one will be able to con you into buying a bottle of bad tequila for three times what it's worth. Your note about dried corks is an interesting one to consider. Crazy about gin? Richards pointed out that, although the distillation process should, in theory, destroy the gluten in alcohols produced from grains like wheat and rye, "cross contamination and tiny gluten proteins surviving the process may lead to a reaction in some." Informe Consejo Regulador del Mezcal 2017 and 2020. A mezcal worm is an insect larva found in some types of mezcal produced in Oaxaca, Mexico. We know that Mezcal with a worm is an intriging topic and well give you some advise because, Yes, of course! While worms do live in agave leaves, adding one to a bottle of mezcal is not standard practice, according to a 2015 article from Maxim. Learn more. Is mezcal healthier than tequila? Flavors of cinnamon, sand, and slate. Jonny, Notes of clay. As pulque researcher Gonzalo Alvarez says, Ive seen and tasted pulque that is prepared with worms, chiles and salt that have been ground together with a mortar and pestle. Copyright 2023 StillTasty LLC. If you are the new mezcal drinker among the group person who finishes the bottle of mezcal has to eat the worm. Long finish. Chris, Lighter nose and more creamy notes and vanilla on the palate. So, back to the drowned worm. The gusano is there to tell us that agave spirits are and have always been in flux. Mezcal must be produced under the country's Denomination of Origin (DO). Gusano de Oro was trademarked in 1948, so that happened two years before Adamss claim of 1950. So, if your friends dare you to eat the gusano de maguey after a night of drinking and you're feeling particularly bold (or maybe just drunk), don't be afraid to give it a try. The word "mezcal" comes from the term mexcalli. According to WebMD, limonene is also used in alternative medicine to treat obesity and bronchitis, but its effectiveness in treating these conditions has not been scientifically proven. Individuals are exposed to ethyl carbamate largely through drinking alcoholic beverages. First, you have to harvest a mature agave plant. We pulled a few lower ABV mezcals off the shelf earlier this year. [1] In the original bottles, we left about 2-3oz of mezcal to interact with the air left in the bottle. While the first 2 or 3 glasses taste bad, once you reach 4 and upwards you kind of get used to itprobably is that being tipsy helps. We should do a really special Mezcal. The researchers found that the geraniol had an antidepressant-like effect on the mice, suggesting that the terpene could have important therapeutic benefits for humans struggling with stress and depression. "People say if you eat the worm in the bottle you'll hallucinate," says Reyes. Yes!!!! Obviously, we can verify a commercial product existed at least back in 1944, courtesy of Legitimo Mezcal, and maybe they werent the first. We all agreed that the finish on the Excess-air mezcal was much longer and more pronounced. The former Breaking Bad co-leads are now liquor brand co-founders, bringing a little bit of Oaxaca to your bar cart with Dos Hombres mezcal. Until 1994, nearly every bottle of mezcal legally exported to the USA had a gusano in it. Did the flavor change for the better? This iconic salt is a finely ground powder of chili, sea salt, and dried agave worm and has an umami rich flavor that offers a bold counterpoint to any mezcal. Casamigos tequila takes things slow. Agave can yield both distilled and fermented drinks. His pride in the liquor is almost as bright and clear as the drink itself. While it's true that both liquors are made from agave, there are a few key differences that set mezcal apart. Most likely the gusano wormed its way into these bottles to remind us that Mexicos culinary history is diverse and conflictive, informed by religion, local and global markets, regional taste, and sheer improvisation. The ovens are deep pits lined with lava rocks that are . You should definitely give them an opportunity and if you have tasted other really good Mezcales with worms, let us know. While the scientists didn't examine the eugenol in mezcal specifically, it's likely that eugenol from any source would have this effect.
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