Mexican whisky

Mexican whisky is a style of whisky (distilled from corn) developed and produced in Mexico. While Mexico doesn't have a long history of producing whisky, there has been a recent push to establish Mexico as a preeminent whisky country with a small group fostering the industry in the country.[1]

History

Whisky production in Mexico is almost non-existent with the first real Mexican whisky being produced in 2013.[2] This is mainly due to the popularity of other distilled drinks such as tequila and mezcal in the country with the majority of whisky consumed in Mexico being imports from other countries. Today, most of the Mexican whisky produced originates from Oaxaca in Sierra Norte where heirloom corn is used due to its distinct taste from regular GMO corn.[3]

Despite the fact that the Mexican industry is relatively young, Mexican whisky has seen a rapid growth in popularity thanks in part to millennials who actively seek out new and different products and have helped to push the awareness of the country's whisky.[4] The popularity of heirloom corn in the production has also helped it to become more in demand despite the rise of cheaper, mass-produced corn.[5]

In 2019, the first ever distillery dedicated entirely to the production of Mexican whisky, Destileria y Bodega Abasolo,  was completed in Jilotepec de Abasolo —about 1.5 hours outside of Mexico City.  Jilotepec is known as "the birthplace" of corn and Abasolo whisky is the first whisky made from 100% Ancestral Mexican corn (Cacahuazintle) that has undergone nixtamalization  – a 4,000 year old Mesoamerican process.[6]


See also

References
  1. "Mexican Whisky Association – Protecting Mexican Whisky Trade". mexicanwhiskyassociation.com. Retrieved 2019-12-25.
  2. "First Mexican whisky unveiled". thespiritsbusiness.com. Retrieved 2019-12-25.
  3. "Everything You Need to Know About Sierra Norte and Mexican Whiskey". Thrillist. Retrieved 2019-12-25.
  4. "Chicago Tribune". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-12-25.
  5. "Mexican Whiskey". liquor.com. Retrieved 2019-12-25.
  6. Fabricant, Florence (2020-05-11). "Now From Mexico: Corn Whiskey". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
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