Raicilla
Raicilla is a distilled spirit, originating in the south western portion of the Mexican state of Jalisco. Like tequila and mezcal, it is a product of the agave plant.
Traditionally raicilla has been created and sold as a "moonshine" product without government sanction or approval. Recently a distiller, La Venenosa, has begun to market a variety of legal brands of raicilla.
Process
It is distilled in crude, primitive stills from a fermented mash made from the central stem (piña) of the maguey plant. The mash is slow cooked, and the steam condensed on a copper cone cooled, traditionally, by spring water. To make a liter of Raicilla takes 10 kg of agave. Many different species of agaves are used to produce Raicilla, including Agave angustifolia ("Chico Aguiar" or "Yellow"), Agave maximiliana, Agave inaequidens and Agave rhodacanta.[1] If not watered down it is usually more than 100 proof.