Other Notable Mexican Distillates
04. Other Mexican Spirits
Other Mexican Spirits
Throughout Mexico, there are numerous regional distillates made from agave, desert succulents and other indigenous materials. Here are a few of the more prominent ones:
Agave-Based Distillates
Bacanora
A DO-protected spirit (established in 2000) made with Agave angustifolia in the state of Sonora. Production methods are similar to mezcal.
Comiteco
Produced in the region around the city of Comitán de Domínguez in Chiapas, Comiteco is a spirit distilled from aguamiel (or agave sap). The Secretary of Economy in Chiapas is in the process of requesting a DO. Comiteco differs from other agave distillates that use the cooked piña as the raw material for production.
Raicilla
Approved for the establishment of a DO in 2019, raicilla must be made from five varieties of agave (rhodacantha, angustifolia, maximiliana, inaequidens, valenciana) within 16 municipalities in the state of Jalisco (Tomatlán, Cabo Corrientes, Puerto Vallarta, San Sebastián del Oeste, Mascota, Talpa de Allende, Atenguillo, Mixtlán, Guachinango, Ayutla, Cuautla, Tenamaxtlán, Tecolotlán, Chiquilistlán, Ejutla; and one from Nayarit: Banderas Bay.) Production methods are similar to mezcal.
Tuxca
An agave spirit without a DO made in the Tuxcacuesco region of Jalisco. Production methods are similar to mezcal.
Non-Agave Distillates
Charanda
A DO-protected (2003) sugarcane distillate native to 16 municipalities in the state of Michoacán. The cane grows in the rich red volcanic soil in many parts of the region, earning its name — Charanda in Purépecha, the language of the Tarascan people indigenous to Michoacán, means “red soil.”
Sotol
Distilled from the Dasylirion plant in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila and Durango. Production can be similar to mezcal, but because the Dasylirion plant is not an agave, it cannot be called an agave spirit.