The Coolest Quarantine Mission Ever? Making Tequila at Residence – TasteTequila

On this unusual pandemic yr asking adults what they did throughout quarantine has change into as frequent as asking youngsters what they did throughout summer time trip.

Whereas most of North America was in peak sourdough bread making, we determined to deal with a special form of challenge. Since we dwell within the Mexican state of Jalisco, have tequila {industry} pals, and an limitless curiosity about tequila manufacturing, we thought we’d attempt to make our personal tiny batch of tequila, or “agave spirit”, by hand.

(Disclaimer: Something we make at house can not legally be referred to as “tequila” as a result of it’s not made below the supervision of the CRT. Though we’re utilizing the identical kind of agave, producing inside the denomination of origin, and following the identical course of as tequila, we’re technically making an “agave spirit.”)

Our objective: make one thing drinkable.

We’ve been by sufficient distilleries to know that tequila making isn’t straightforward. One misstep alongside the way in which may destroy a whole batch, so we made positive to have a number of phone-a-friend connections* in place from the very begin.

After doing the mathematics, we determined that we would wish one cooked blue weber agave piña. (In a conventional manufacturing course of you will get about 9 liters of 40% abv tequila out of a single 50-kilo agave. ) Being optimistic, we aimed for 4 liters, utilizing what would little question be a much less environment friendly technique.

However, the place to get the cooked agave? That is the one step we couldn’t do ourselves since we couldn’t determine the right way to gradual cook dinner a 50 kilo agave at our home. We shared our plan with Guillermo Erickson Sauza, Founding father of Tequila Fortaleza, and he was amused by our challenge.

“You will get one from me,” he stated. So we have been off to the Fortaleza distillery within the city of Tequila to pinch an agave recent from the oven.

Sourcing the Agave

We set out early within the morning on Might 16, 2020. Grover chosen a 50.7 kilo mass of completely cooked, slow-roasted agave (it spent 3 days in a brick oven on the Fortaleza distillery).

The 6-year previous agave got here from Mexpan, Ixtlán del Río, which is positioned 80 kilometers from Tequila within the Mexican state of Nayarit. (A bit of greater than an hour west of the city of Tequila.)

On the way in which house to Tlaquepaque, the automobile, stuffed with agave nonetheless scorching to the contact, smelled wonderful. (Concept for brand spanking new enterprise: cooked agave air fresheners.)

Extraction: CrushFit

As soon as again in Tlaquepaque, the extraction started. That is essentially the most labor-intensive a part of the method, which entails crushing the agave with a view to launch the sugars which might be clinging to the fibers. Usually a distillery will use a curler mill, or tahona, to do that work. As an alternative, we used 2 wood posts to smash the cooked agave in plastic cement mixing trays, after which washed the fibers by hand. This course of took 2 full days.

Fortunately, we had some assist. Our pals Karla and Andres, who’re agave spirit lovers in addition to crossfit fanatics, noticed their 2 worlds collide. Quickly “CrushFit” was underway.

Our goal sugar stage was 12 brix, which is larger than most distilleries use. Our logic was that we had restricted fermentation capability, so we would have liked to benefit from what we had. Packing extra sugar and fewer water into the containers appeared to make logical space-saving sense on the time.

We ultimately partly stuffed two 40-liter chrome steel pots, and two 19-liter glass carboys with the sugary water (mosto). We managed to create 83 liters of mosto, and there was nonetheless loads of sugar left on the fibers. (Lesson discovered : Rinsing by hand is a really inefficient extraction technique!)

Fermentation: The place The Magic Occurs

“It’s most likely crucial step within the course of as a result of that’s the place most of the aromas and flavors come from,” Grover stated. We did lots of superior analysis on this and ultimately got here up with a plan.

We selected a champagne yeast (Lalvin EC-1118) as a result of it could actually deal with larger temperatures (this was occurring in Might, the most well liked month of the yr in Jalisco). This yeast pressure is thought for its slow-and-low traits. We weren’t in a rush, and feared a effervescent fermentation that may overflow the tanks.

We additionally determined to ferment with out fibers, for 2 causes: first, the fiber cap that types on the prime of the tank may trigger it to overheat, and secondly, we wished to maintain methanol ranges down within the last product (fibers include extra methanol). Additionally, we didn’t need the fiber to take up an excessive amount of house in our limited-capacity tanks.

A few of our favourite tequilas ferment with out fibers (Fortaleza, G4, Terralta, Don Fulano), so we weren’t nervous about lacking out on taste. Usually, when the manufacturing course of makes use of a tahona or is crushed by hand, fibers are put into the fermentation tank just because the extraction course of isn’t as environment friendly, giving the yeast an additional alternative to eat the sugar that’s nonetheless sticking to the fibers.

We pitched the yeast (dry) at 78˚ F, after which allowed it to ferment naturally, exterior on our coated rooftop. Inside 24 hours, the exercise brought on the temperature to rise to 83˚ F. Nonetheless, after checking in with a number of of our tequila pals, they have been nervous that the temperature was too low, and we weren’t doing sufficient to manage it.

So we put some warmth mats below the tanks, and obtained the temperature as much as 93˚ F, which helped to maintain the temperature from dropping through the cool nights. After that, the temperature remained at 90˚ F for the rest of the fermentation.

The yeast carried out precisely as anticipated, and seven days later we began distillation, though we may see there was nonetheless some fermentation exercise occurring. The brix stage dropped from 12 to six, which implies the yeast had already consumed half of the out there sugars.

Some distilleries will begin their fermentation at 8 brix, after which wait till the mosto reaches 1 brix — a change of seven — earlier than distillation. We thought {that a} change of 6 was adequate. There was additionally a priority that we’d permit the fermentation to go on too lengthy. Since we’d by no means finished this earlier than, we didn’t know at which level the fermentation can be completed. The danger of letting fermentation go too lengthy is that it could actually begin to scent like vinegar after which the completed product may be overly lactic, like spoiled milk. We positively wished to keep away from that.

It turned out that we have been nowhere near that time, however now we all know!

Distillation

“Don’t blow your self up!”

That was the primary bit of recommendation we obtained from Guillermo. He was severely involved that we have been going to injure ourselves as soon as we obtained to the distillation step. So we approached this a part of the method fastidiously.

We purchased a tiny 5 gallon copper pot nonetheless on-line, and used a propane gasoline heater to carry it as much as temperature. There’s positively one thing that looks like a little bit of magic if you expertise distillation for the primary time. This was essentially the most thrilling a part of the method.

The primary query we confronted: when to chop heads and tails? There’s a sure artwork to this, and grasp distillers know precisely when to start out and cease gathering the distillate.

Throughout the first distillation, we determined to start out gathering at 37% abv, and to cease gathering when the tank reached 23% abv.

Throughout the second distillation, we began gathering at 73% abv, and stopped gathering when the tank reached 47% abv (or 12% abv direct from the nonetheless.)

We initially wished to distill to 46% abv, however when what was coming from the nonetheless was 12% abv we determined to cease early, since taking an excessive amount of from the nonetheless beneath 15% alcohol may result in elevated quantities of methanol within the last product.

Each jiffy we took samples from the nonetheless and stored notes on which aromas have been coming off. This can be a fascinating expertise that each tequila lover ought to have. It’s an effective way to study which kinds of aromas and flavors are pure to tequila. (Trace, tutti-fruity and cake batter icing aren’t pure!)

So as of look, that is what we detected:

START @74.8% abv
—

—
END @12.8% abv

Yield

We ended up with 4.9 liters at 47.1 abv. Success!!

After it rested in glass bottles for 80 days, we added water and introduced it all the way down to 44.4% abv, which is the precise level the place we felt it opened as much as showcase its distinctive traits. We ended up with 6 bottles (700ml). Since we had been calling it our “Lotecito”, which implies “tiny lot” in Spanish, we thought it could be enjoyable to have actual labels made, disclosing all of the manufacturing particulars.

Is it secure to drink? We had it examined, and all the lab outcomes present that it’s secure; nothing fell exterior of industry-standard authorized limits. In different phrases, you gained’t go blind consuming our agave moonshine.

Listed here are the check outcomes, displaying the higher and decrease limits a product should fall into in varied classes to be legally bought and safely consumed.

Classes Discovered

1) 12 brix might be too excessive. There was simply an excessive amount of sugar there and the yeast couldn’t get round to consuming all of it within the time we allowed for fermentation. Subsequent time we’ll strive it at 10.

2) Protecting the temperature extra constant appears to be one thing our tequila-making pals really feel is vital. We weren’t nervous about it sufficient, so subsequent time we’ll make it possible for it doesn’t have a lot variation. Will probably be attention-grabbing to check the distinction within the last product.

3) We must always measure the alcohol stage within the completed mosto along with the change in brix. We might want to buy some alcohol measurement instruments able to detecting decrease ranges of alcohol.

4) We lower too many heads this time, and we shouldn’t be so nervous. Subsequent time we must always acquire the heads into smaller vessels after which combine them again in as wanted to carry extra aromas and flavors.

5) Deep clear the nonetheless between first and second distillations. Subsequent time we’ll run some steam by the nonetheless earlier than beginning the 2nd distillation. We didn’t clear it totally sufficient and a few unusual, thick, yellow stuff got here out at the beginning of the distillation. It will definitely went away, however brought on us to panic a bit (okay, so much) once we noticed it.

This entire course of was immensely enjoyable and attention-grabbing. The consequence was a drinkable product, so we achieved our quarantine mission.

It’s additionally not on the market. So, if you wish to strive it for your self, any Tequila Matchmaker consumer can come to Guadalajara and pattern it at our workplace whereas it lasts!

We’ve already obtained plans for the following batch. 🙂

*Due to Guillermo Erickson Sauza, Ana Maria Romero Mena, Antonio Rodriguez, Jaime Villalobos Sauza, and Sergio Mendoza for being supportive of our challenge, and for taking our calls and messages (generally in the course of the evening.)