Tequila agave
Encyclopedia
Agave tequilana, commonly called blue agave (agave azul), tequila agave, mezcal or maguey is an agave
plant that is an important economic product of Jalisco
, Mexico
, due to its role as the base ingredient of tequila
, a popular distilled spirit. The high production of sugars, mostly in the form of fructose, in the core of this plant is the most important characteristic of the plant, making it suitable for the preparation of alcoholic beverages.
The tequila agave is a native of Jalisco, Mexico. The plant favors high altitudes of more than 1,500 meters and grows in rich and sandy soils. While commercial and wild agaves have different life cycles, both grow into large succulents, with spiky fleshy leaves, that can reach over two meters in height. Agaves sprout a stalk (quiote) when about five years old that can grow an additional five meters and are topped with yellow flowers. This stalk is cut off from commercial plants so that the plant will put more energy into the heart.
The flowers are pollinated by a native bat
(Leptonycteris nivalis) and produce several thousand seeds per plant. The plant then dies. The shoots on commercial plants are removed when about a year old to allow the heart to grow larger. The plants are then reproduced by planting these shoots; this has led to a considerable loss of genetic diversity in cultivated blue agave.
It is rare for one kept as a houseplant to flower, but a 50-year old blue agave in Boston
grew a 10 m (30 ft) stalk requiring a hole in the greenhouse roof and flowered in the summer of 2006.
and pulque
are also produced from blue and other agaves by different methods (though still using the sap) and are regarded as more traditional.
fungi and Erwinia
bacteria, exacerbated by the low genetic diversity
of the agave plants. Other problems include the agave weevil
, Scyphophorus acupunctatus, and a fungus, Thielaviopsis paradoxa.
According to a 2004 study, additional pathogens, Erwinia carotovora
, Enterobacter agglomerans, Pseudomonas mendocina
, and Serratia
sp. are responsible for continued rot.
Agave
Agave is a genus of monocots. The plants are perennial, but each rosette flowers once and then dies ; they are commonly known as the century plant....
plant that is an important economic product of Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, due to its role as the base ingredient of tequila
Tequila
Tequila is a spirit made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, northwest of Guadalajara, and in the highlands of the western Mexican state of Jalisco....
, a popular distilled spirit. The high production of sugars, mostly in the form of fructose, in the core of this plant is the most important characteristic of the plant, making it suitable for the preparation of alcoholic beverages.
The tequila agave is a native of Jalisco, Mexico. The plant favors high altitudes of more than 1,500 meters and grows in rich and sandy soils. While commercial and wild agaves have different life cycles, both grow into large succulents, with spiky fleshy leaves, that can reach over two meters in height. Agaves sprout a stalk (quiote) when about five years old that can grow an additional five meters and are topped with yellow flowers. This stalk is cut off from commercial plants so that the plant will put more energy into the heart.
The flowers are pollinated by a native bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
(Leptonycteris nivalis) and produce several thousand seeds per plant. The plant then dies. The shoots on commercial plants are removed when about a year old to allow the heart to grow larger. The plants are then reproduced by planting these shoots; this has led to a considerable loss of genetic diversity in cultivated blue agave.
It is rare for one kept as a houseplant to flower, but a 50-year old blue agave in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
grew a 10 m (30 ft) stalk requiring a hole in the greenhouse roof and flowered in the summer of 2006.
Tequila production
Tequila is produced by removing the heart (piña) of the plant in its twelfth year. Harvested piñas normally weigh between 36–91 kg (80–200 lb). This heart is stripped of its leaves and heated to remove the sap, which is fermented and distilled. Other beverages like mezcalMezcal
Mezcal, or mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from the maguey plant native to Mexico. The word mezcal comes from Nahuatl metl and ixcalli which mean 'oven cooked agave.'...
and pulque
Pulque
Pulque, or octli, is a milk-colored, somewhat viscous alcoholic beverage made from the fermented sap of the maguey plant, and is a traditional native beverage of Mexico. The drink’s history extends far back into the Mesoamerican period, when it was considered sacred, and its use was limited to...
are also produced from blue and other agaves by different methods (though still using the sap) and are regarded as more traditional.
Disease
As agave production has moved to an industrial scale since the end of 1980s, diseases and pests, collectively referred to as TMA (tristeza y muerte de agave, "wilting and death of agave"), have hit the crops. Through the 1990s, diseases spread, particularly FusariumFusarium
Fusarium is a large genus of filamentous fungi widely distributed in soil and in association with plants. Most species are harmless saprobes, and are relatively abundant members of the soil microbial community. Some species produce mycotoxins in cereal crops that can affect human and animal health...
fungi and Erwinia
Erwinia
Erwinia is a genus of Enterobacteriaceae bacteria containing mostly plant pathogenic species which was named for the first phytobacteriologist, Erwin Smith. It is a gram negative bacterium related to E. coli, Shigella, Salmonella and Yersinia. It is primarily a rod-shaped bacteria. A well-known...
bacteria, exacerbated by the low genetic diversity
Genetic diversity
Genetic diversity, the level of biodiversity, refers to the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species. It is distinguished from genetic variability, which describes the tendency of genetic characteristics to vary....
of the agave plants. Other problems include the agave weevil
Weevil
A weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than , and herbivorous. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae...
, Scyphophorus acupunctatus, and a fungus, Thielaviopsis paradoxa.
According to a 2004 study, additional pathogens, Erwinia carotovora
Erwinia carotovora
Pectobacterium carotovorum is a bacterium of the family Enterobacteriaceae, which is a plant pathogen with a diverse host range. It causes soft rot and blackleg of potato and vegetables as well as slime flux on many different tree species....
, Enterobacter agglomerans, Pseudomonas mendocina
Pseudomonas mendocina
Pseudomonas mendocina is a Gram-negative environmental bacterium that can cause opportunistic nosocomial infections, such as infective endocarditis and spondylodiscitis, although cases are very rare. It has potential use in bioremediation as it is able to degrade toluene. Based on 16S rRNA...
, and Serratia
Serratia
Serratia is a genus of Gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, rod-shaped bacteria of the Enterobacteriaceae family. The most common species in the genus, S. marcescens, is normally the only pathogen and usually causes nosocomial infections. However, rare strains of S. plymuthica, S. liquefaciens,...
sp. are responsible for continued rot.