Tequila and Raicilla: History, Origins & Flavour
Tequila’s Backstory Isn’t What You Think
This year’s CMB Spirit Selection, one of the largest and most diverse spirits competitions in the world, took place in the heart of it all—Tequila, Jalisco. The 27th edition had nearly 2600 samples from over 70 countries. The judging was rigorous, the atmosphere electric, and for me personally—it was my first time in Tequila, the town itself with great hospitality as you expect from Mexico.
Not my first time in Mexico, but stepping into Tequila felt different. “Jalisco es México”, they say.
It made me realise something: We know tequila—but we don’t really know its history.
We think of tequila as this clean, commercial drink—something you shoot at a bar or drink in a highball. But the true history of tequila is far more layered, shaped by centuries of culture, conquest, and sensory science.
From Agave to “Vino de Mezcal”
The story starts not with tequila—but with agave. Long before Europeans arrived, Indigenous communities across what is now Mexico were fermenting agave sap into ritual and celebratory drinks. The word mezcal itself comes from the Nahuatl mexcalli, meaning “cooked agave”.
But distillation? That came later.
When the Spanish arrived, they didn’t just bring horses and Catholicism—they brought the concept of distillation, likely influenced by their trade with the Philippines. Filipino immigrants showed local communities how to build small, portable stills, which were used to distil coconut sap into what was called vino de coco. Some historians may argue that the Spanish introduced distillation using traditional European (specifically Moorish-influenced) alembic pot stills.
Soon enough, agave replaced coconut, and the term shifted to vino de mezcal—the earliest distilled agave spirits. Tequila as we know it didn’t exist yet.
So Where Did Tequila Come In?
It wasn’t until the 1600s that records mention vino de mezcal de Tequila—agave spirits made near the town of Tequila, Jalisco. By the 1800s, that long name began to shorten. Producers leaned into the identity of place. Tequila stopped being just a town and started becoming a product.
By 1864, tequila had become a known name in the Mexican spirits market. And by the late 1800s, it was already industrialising. A key moment came in 1887, when a report documented the use of column stills in Jalisco. That meant more output, smoother profiles, and a new way of talking about quality.
Tequila was no longer just a local spirit—it was on its way to becoming an exportable, scalable brand.
Industrialisation: A Double-Edged Sword
Here’s where things get intriguing. Tequila’s success came with trade-offs.
To meet growing demand, producers standardised the agave—settling on the blue Weber variety (Agave Tequilana). It matured faster, produced more sugar, and grew predictably. But this narrowed tequila’s flavour profile compared to the diversity of agave used in older styles like mezcal or today’s raicilla.
The production process also evolved. Traditional methods—like cooking agave in pit ovens or fermenting in wooden tanks—were replaced with diffusers, stainless steel tanks, and continuous distillation. Efficient? Absolutely. But the result was often a smoother, cleaner, and often flatter spirit.
This is how modern tequila came to be: the product of heritage, yes, but also of optimisation.
The Forgotten Roots
What gets lost in tequila’s modern success is the wild origin story that includes:
- Indigenous fermentation techniques
- Filipino-style stills
- Centuries of local experimentation across different agave species
Tequila wasn’t created overnight. It was forged over centuries—borrowed, blended, and battled into existence. And while today’s bottles may carry the name proudly, many no longer carry the full story in the glass.
That’s where raicilla comes in!
What Is Raicilla—and Why Is It Making Waves in the Agave World?
If tequila is the ambassador of Jalisco, raicilla is its unruly poet — lesser known, but full of life, character, and conviction.
While tequila has long commanded the global spotlight, raicilla has been quietly redefining what an agave spirit can be. And now, after centuries in the shadows, it’s stepping into its own.
Until recently, I hadn’t given raicilla the attention it deserves. I had tasted a few bottles here and there, mostly out of curiosity, but I never really studied it. That changed this year. Focusing on it with fresh eyes, I realised just how much personality, texture, and energy it carries — a sharp, expressive contrast to tequila’s polish. Raicilla doesn’t whisper; it speaks in layers. And foremost, it’s exciting!
A Spirit with Deep Roots in Jalisco
Raicilla (pronounced rye-SEE-ya) is not a modern creation or a marketing revival—it’s a heritage spirit with deep local roots. Like tequila, it’s made from agave, but its production zones, agave species, and methods are far more diverse.
According to the Denominación de Origen Raicilla, granted in 2019, it can be produced in 16 municipalities in Jalisco and one in Nayarit. Those regions are divided into two main terroirs:
- La Costa (the Coast) — warm, humid, lush.
- La Sierra (the Mountains) — temperate, dry, and rugged.
Each produces a spirit that reflects its land: coastal raicillas tend to be bright, aromatic, and full of tropical notes, while mountain expressions are earthier, smokier, and more structured. This is terroir in its purest sense — not just in the soil, but in the process, the tools, and the people.
Agaves Beyond the Blue
Unlike tequila, which must use only Agave tequilana Weber var. azul (blue Weber agave), raicilla embraces variety.
Producers work with Agave maximiliana, Angustifolia, Inaequidens, Rhodacantha, and Valenciana, among others. Each species contributes its fingerprint of sugar, minerals, and aromatic compounds.
That biodiversity gives raicilla a spectrum of flavours tequila can’t easily match—from wild honey and dried herbs to roasted pineapple, peppered smoke, and even savoury notes. It’s unpredictable in the best way possible.
Craft Over Industry
If tequila’s story has been one of scaling up, raicilla’s has been about holding on — preserving old methods that predate industrialisation.
In La Costa, agaves are cooked in pit ovens lined with hot stones, creating a process known locally as el volcán — because when water hits the stones, steam erupts like a small volcano. It’s as dramatic as it sounds, and it leaves a gentle smokiness in the spirit. The hot stones provide conduction (direct heat), whereas the steam they create provides convection (indirect heat), resulting in a unique flavour profile.
In La Sierra, distillers still use direct-fire copper stills, heated over open flames. No automated steam, no stainless steel — just flame, patience, and instinct. The result is a spirit that carries the marks of its making: rustic, vibrant, honest.
Categories and Styles
Raicilla is classified into three production systems and six classes, each defined by process rather than marketing:
Production categories:
- Raicilla – semi-industrial methods
- Raicilla Artesanal – handcrafted, small-batch production
- Raicilla Tradicional (Ancestral) – the most traditional, using manual tools, pit ovens, and wood fermentation
Classes:
- Joven or Blanco (unaged)
- Maturada en Vidrio (rested in glass)
- Reposada and Añejo (aged in wood)
- Extra Añejo
- Abocada (infused or flavoured)
Most producers still favour young, unaged expressions — letting the agave itself take the stage.
Character, Complexity, and Contrast
Where tequila has evolved into elegance and uniformity, raicilla is still raw, textural, and personal. Every taste feels like a story — sometimes wild, sometimes delicate, but always with personality and authority.
And that’s what makes it so compelling. It’s not trying to be tequila; it’s trying to be itself.
For a spirit that was once hidden from authorities and mislabeled to avoid taxes centuries ago, raicilla now carries legitimacy, recognition, and pride.
Yet it has never lost its soul — the firepit, the mountain air, and the long wait as the agave hearts caramelise underground.
A New Chapter for an Old Spirit
Since its official recognition, raicilla’s momentum has been building. There are now over 200 registered brands and more than 80 tavernas (distilleries).
In bars and competitions worldwide, raicilla is becoming a talking point, not just a curiosity. And for anyone tracing the history of tequila and raicilla, it’s clear that the two aren’t rivals — they’re siblings who took different paths.
Shared Origins, Diverging Paths
Both tequila and raicilla trace their lineage to the early vino de mezcal traditions of colonial Mexico. When Spanish and Filipino settlers brought distillation technology in the 1500s and 1600s, locals began fermenting and distilling agave to create early mezcals.
Over time, production in the town of Tequila became distinct enough that it earned its identity — vino de mezcal de Tequila. By the late 19th century, the name had shortened simply to “tequila,” marking the start of an industrial and cultural journey that would take it around the world.
Raicilla, meanwhile, stayed hidden in the mountains and coasts of Jalisco — a spirit made in small quantities by local producers using wood, fire, and instinct. For centuries, it wasn’t even legal; raicilleros disguised their bottles under false names to avoid taxation. Only in 2019 did it finally gain official Denomination of Origin recognition, securing its place beside tequila, mezcal, sotol, and bacanora.
Tequila became Mexico’s global calling card.
Raicilla became its whispered secret.
Agave: One Species vs. Many
The simplest difference between tequila and raicilla lies in the agave itself.
Tequila is made exclusively from the blue Weber agave (Agave tequilana Weber var. azul), selected in the late 19th century for one reason: efficiency. It matures faster, yields more sugar, and thrives in cultivation. It’s about consistency and efficiency.
Raicilla, on the other hand, draws from multiple agave species, often wild and genetically diverse. Common varieties include Agave maximiliana, Angustifolia, Rhodacantha, Inaequidens, and Valenciana. Some, like Maximiliana, reproduce only by seed, creating remarkable variation even within a single field.
The result is an entirely different expression: tequila offers harmony and polish; raicilla offers individuality and surprise.
The Process Defines the Personality
Production philosophy divides these spirits as clearly as taste.
Tequila’s evolution mirrors industrial progress. Traditional pit ovens and tahona stone mills gave way to autoclaves, diffusers, and stainless-steel fermentation tanks. Distillation often uses column stills, allowing producers to fine-tune yields and flavour consistency. It’s the art of precision—and efficiency.
Raicilla’s methods have barely changed in 400 years. In La Costa, agaves are cooked in underground pits lined with volcanic stones, creating a steaming eruption known locally as el volcán. In La Sierra, distillers use direct-fire copper stills heated by open flames. Fermentation takes place in wood or clay, guided by wild yeasts and experience, not temperature gauges.
Taste and Chemistry: What the Palate Can’t Miss
In tequila, the controlled hydrolysis process converts agave fructans into simple sugars that yield clean ethanol and subtle caramel notes. Double distillation removes most of the heavier congeners, resulting in smooth, elegant spirits ideal for blending or ageing.
Raicilla, however, embraces the chaos. Single distillation and wild fermentation preserve volatile compounds like esters, aldehydes, and guaiacols — the molecules that create its smoky, earthy depth.
This is why raicilla feels alive: each bottle is a snapshot of time, temperature, and microbial life.
Tequila gives you control. Raicilla gives you wildness.
Culture, Regulation, and Revival
Both spirits now hold protected denominations of origin, yet their worlds couldn’t be more different in scale.
Tequila is a multibillion-litre industry exported globally. Raicilla’s annual production is about 600,000 litres, spread across roughly 200 registered brands and 80 tavernas (the local name for distilleries).
Tequila represents Mexico’s modernisation — its ability to craft a national icon for export.
Raicilla represents Mexico’s preservation instinct — a refusal to lose craft to convenience.
The Split — and the Harmony
In the end, the history of tequila and raicilla isn’t about rivalry; it’s about balance.
Tequila proves that tradition can scale. Raicilla proves that authenticity can endure.
If tequila is the song everyone knows by heart, raicilla is the one you discover and can’t stop replaying.
