How to find the good stuff July 24, National Tequila Day

If the only thing you know about tequila is that it gives you a whopping hangover, you’re not doing it right.

“I’ve heard everyone had that one night when tequila wasn’t good to them,” said Brian Livesay, beverage director of the Matador restaurant in Charleston.

Livesay and Matador general manager Jordan Huschka recently offered a tutorial for getting tequila that won’t leave your head banging — in other words, the good stuff — ahead of National Tequila Day, July 24.

“Of course, if you drink a half a bottle of any spirit, you’re not going to feel great,” Livesay said. “But tequila — real tequila — won’t give you that sick feeling. It has roughly the same amount of calories as vodka, which a lot of people drink when they’re worried about calories, but tequila has agave sugars, not potato or grain sugars like vodka. It’s low on the glycemic index. I can’t say it’s health food, but…”

1. Tequila is a specific kind of mezcal

The first thing to know, Livesay and Huschka said, is that mezcal is the broad category, just like whiskey is. Tequila is a specific kind of mezcal which, in turn, is a product of the agave.

Agave takes six to 25 years to mature — and the Weber Blue, the only one that creates tequila, six to 10 — which makes the product from this desert succulent even more precious.

To make tequila, the agave plant, almost like an artichoke, must be stripped of its leaves, and the heart, which can weigh up to 120 pounds, is chopped, cooked, fermented and distilled.

Mexicans guard their tequila reputation as fiercely as the French guard their Champagne’s appellation.

For a long time, the spirit that was sent to the United States was the inferior version known as “mixtos.” After all, if tequila was just being used to power margaritas, why export the good stuff?

But now tequila is this country’s second most-consumed spirit, right behind bourbon, and tequila drinkers in the know look for a few things to ensure they’re getting the real deal.

“A good tequila has a deep quality, and you can taste the terroir, the land where it’s grown,” Livesay said, adding that the volcanic soil of the Jalisco region offers the perfect home for the Weber Blue Agave. About 90% of tequila comes from Jalisco.

The first thing to look for on a tequila label is that the tequila is 100% agave and not a “mixto” or mixed with other sweeteners. Those are the causes of epic hangovers. The mixtos can be as little as 51% agave and can be sent outside of Mexico for bottling.

2. Look for the number

Second, look for the “NOM,” the Norma Oficial Mexicana, or number. Huschka said tequila is one of the most regulated spirits in the world, and the number is unique to each distillery, much like an artist numbers each print of his art. The NOM, similar to wine appellations in France and Spain, ensures the tequila
was made in Mexico and can even be used to trace the spirit all the way back to where its agave was grown, should you care to track it.

3. Check your mood

Finally, determine which style of tequila suits your mood.

The blanco, or silver, style is pure tequila straight from the stills. All tequila starts as blanco before it’s aged. The blanco has a bit of a citrus pop with some herbal flavoring.

The reposado, or rested, tequila is aged in wooden barrels between two months and a year. There’s still the fresh citrus note, but the wood adds some caramel, vanilla and spice.

And, finally, the anejo, or aged, tequila is aged between one and three years in wooden barrels that provide more interior space to volume of fluid. The result is a richer, rounder flavor full of vanilla, smoke and even leather.

For those who can’t give up their whiskey (and Charleston is known as a place where we love our brown waters), the extra anejo is aged for more than three years and has a flavor profile remarkably similar to whiskey.

4. Drink what you like

One mistake tequila drinkers make, Huschko says, is to get seduced by big national ad campaigns, or tequilas branded by celebrities. Price and notoriety do not necessarily equal quality, he said.

“Personally, I wouldn’t water down a good tequila with ice or a mixer,” Livesay said. “But, nobody here is going to look down on you if you do. Just drink what you like. That’s the best way to drink tequila.”