Mezcal, the alcoholic beverage of true genuine origin from the State of Oaxaca, gets its name from words of the Nahuatl language "elt maguey e izcaloa asar." It is made from agave (a cactus) known as Maguey Espandin (haw angustifolia) that grows specially in the arid soil.

 The process begins with the gathering of the plants, which have grown between eight to ten years and can weigh more than 40 kilos (88 lbs), to then be cooked in a cone-shaped oven made from a base of rocks that is covered with dirt and left for three or four days. The plants then cooked, are crushed with the help of a circular stone mill pulled by a horse, and once ground are left in barrels to ferment. After adding water to aid in the fermentation, the beverage moves on to distillation. The process ends with aging in white oak barrels, which for the best Mezcal can last up to 12 years. Well worth a visit, Matatlán, Oaxaca, the mezcal capital of the world is located 30 km (18.6 mi) from Oaxaca City.

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