What is agave?

Tequila may only be made from Agave tequilana Weber variedad azul, the blue agave. The Mexican standard NOM-006-SCFI-2012 describes it as a plant of the agave family with long, fibrous, lanceolate leaves and a bluish colour. The usable part is the heart, the piña.

Agave is not a cactus but a succulent. Other agave species may be used in mezcal, but not in tequila. The same standard also sets the strength: tequila contains 35 to 55 percent alcohol, measured at 20 degrees.

A blue agave needs years before the piña contains enough sugar. Research in the journal Foods from 2021 describes harvesting around the moment just before flowering, when the sugar content in the plant is at its highest; according to the same publication, that moment returns every seven to eight years. Because of tight supply, several companies have switched to plants of four to six years.

The weight of the pina increases considerably over those years. In that study the pina weighed on average 18.4 kilos at four years, 20.7 kilos at five years and 25.5 kilos at six years. Harvesting is done by hand: the jimador cuts away the leaves and keeps only the heart.

Sugar determines the yield, and that content grows with age. In the same study the total of reducing sugars rose from 15.21 percent at four years to 18.84 percent at five years and 19.21 percent at six years. The sugar content in degrees Brix went from 19.4 to 23.0 and then 24.2.

The study ran on an industrial scale at a tequila producer in the Valles region of Jalisco, with three batches, four, five and six years old. The conclusion was that agaves younger than seven years can also yield a 100 percent agave tequila of the blanco class that meets the standard.

On the label, 100 percent agave separates two categories. With tequila 100 percent agave all sugars come from the blue agave, and that tequila must be bottled at the producer itself in the area of the designation of origin. In the other category, known in the trade as mixto, up to 49 percent of the sugars may come from other sources, so that at least 51 percent remains from blue agave.

The NOM-006-SCFI-2012 also recognises five classes. Blanco or plata is clear and unaged; joven or oro is a blend or a blanco with permitted additions; reposado matures at least two months in contact with oak or cedar wood; anejo at least one year in casks of at most 600 litres; extra anejo at least three years in casks of at most 600 litres.

Tequila is a protected designation of origin from Mexico. The general declaration of protection appeared on 9 December 1974 in the Diario Oficial de la Federación. The area covers 181 municipalities in five states: Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Nayarit and Tamaulipas.

The Consejo Regulador del Tequila supervises and tests against NOM-006-SCFI-2012. The designation is additionally registered as intellectual property in more than 25 countries and territories.

The figures from the Consejo Regulador del Tequila indicate the scale. In 2024, 495.8 million litres of tequila were produced, for which 1.8 million tonnes of agave were processed. Exports came to 400.3 million litres, of which 334.9 million litres went to the United States, 4.1 percent more than the year before.

Behind that production stands a large number of parties. In 2024 the sector counted 42,441 registered agave growers, 206 tequila producers and 2,991 registered brands.