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The Process for Making Mezcal

By Suzanne Barbezat, About.com

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Maguey or Agave Plant

Maguey or agave plant

The maguey or agave plant used to make mezcal

© 2006 Suzanne Barbezat, licensed to About
The plant used to make mezcal is called agave ("ah-gah-vay") or maguey ("mah-gay"). Occasionally it is called a "Century plant" in English because it can grow to be very large and has a long life-span (not really a century, more like 25 to 30 years). Sometimes mistaken for a type of cactus, it in fact belongs to a separate family, Agavaceae. The agave only flowers once in its lifetime, putting forth a tall stem from the center, and the plant dies after flowering. The agave that is used to make mezcal is harvested when it is seven or eight years old.

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