Agave Road Trip

Where can Mezcal geeks go to geek out?

loubank@10ap.com (Lou Bank, Roy Sierra, Daniel Moen) — Thu, 4 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

There are places that have massive collections of beautiful, small-batch agave spirits, but having the bottles isn’t the same as understanding them. And having those bottles, which are often expensive, requires additional expense in training staff. Or, anyway, are most likely going to realize their financial potential with training. But … who does that? Where do agave geeks go to have the geekiest conversations?

Thanks to photographer Russell Lee (1903-1986) for this week’s cover photo, titled, “Proprietor of barroom near Crowley, Louisiana. This man is a Cajun.” Photo retrieved from the Library of Congress.

Shout outs this episode to Michaela at Waffle House #431 in Tucson, the Agave Heritage Festival, Lamata Spirits, Mezonte, John Douglass of Pretty Decent, Fausto Romero of El Acabo Raicilla, and Ivan Vasquez of Madre.

Mezcal, the moon, and multi-generational wisdom

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 May 2026 05:00:00 +0000

I find myself saying “multi-generational wisdom” pretty frequently, in reference to these communities I get to visit in rural Mexico. But when they start talking about how the moon affects their production of agave spirits, or the presence of a pregnant woman, I kind of laugh it off. So what am I missing, where is the truth, and how do I reconcile my own hypocrisy?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto and wisdom from raicillero Paulo Rodriguez and Ana Elvia Rodriguez Lorenzo.

The difference between a good agave and a bad one

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 May 2026 05:00:00 +0000

How often have you heard or read that a brand of Tequila or Mezcal is only using quality agaves? That makes me wonder about those poor, down-market agaves. They deserve love, too, don’t they? And what makes them different from the good agaves? Brix? Years?

The tumbado way to harvest maguey (Paulo Rodriguez remix)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 May 2026 05:00:00 +0000

Last episode I talked with Linda Sullivan about the tumbado process of harvesting agave. This episode … also about tumbado, but with Paulo Rodriguez, the raicillero who brought the method back to Chacala, Jalisco! So, why two episodes about the same thing? I was maybe a bit under the influence when I recorded the episode with Paulo, forgot we’d recorded it, got home, and recorded last week’s episode with Linda. It’s a Deja Lou episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Raicillero Paulo Rodriguez, interpreted by Greg Rutkowski, and Raicillero Omar Alejandro Cruz Ortega, interpreted by Roy Sierra.

Harvesting maguey the “tumbado” way (Linda Sullivan remix)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 May 2026 05:00:00 +0000

I was listening to Tim McKirdy’s podcast “Mezcal’s Untold Past, Soaring Present, and Fragile Future,” and he talks about an agave harvesting process called tumbado, where you disconnect the plant from its roots and let it sit there in the field. It was said to be an old practice that had been lost. Even in the podcast, he said he only heard about this from one guy, so I thought, yeah, probably not really a thing. And then I met Paulo Rodriguez in Chacala, Jalisco.

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto and wisdom from Raicillero Paulo Rodriguez, interpreted by Greg Rutkowski.

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Spirits vs beer vs wine: Last alcohol standing

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 04:00:00 +0000

There’s a graph in the latest report from the Distilled Spirits Council of the US that shows that for the first time in recent history, we’re drinking more spirits than we are either beer or wine. What does this mean, exactly? Or does it mean anything? And why is it that everyone I know will drink wine but wine is, and always has been, the runt of this litter?

Bird poop in the fermenters

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 05:00:00 +0000

I was talking with a brand owner about the process used to make his Tequila, and when he described his fermenters, I asked if they were indoors or outdoors. I hadn’t realized the regulations required them to be indoors – or, anyway, he said they did, though I found nothing in the NOM to corroborate that. But … he said they did because when you go around to these traditional vinatas, it was disgusting to see all the birds pooping in the fermenters. But … is it?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivanof seynasecretoand wisdom from Xaime Niembro, owner Mezcal Gracias a Dios and Juan del Campo Whisky.

Making sense of the Filipino still

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 07:00:00 +0000

When people talk about stills in Mexico, you hear “Filipino” and “alambique” a lot … “Mongolian” a little. And it’s been suggested that the Filipino still was the first to arrive the Americas’ What makes it Filipino? How did it get here? And what’s it got to do with coconuts? Food writer Nic Stevens joins me this week to talk about that plus vino de coco, vino de cana, and the origins of distillation in the Americas!

Making (non)sense of 2025 spirits sales

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Apr 2026 05:00:00 +0000

For the first time in a decade, we’re paying less per liter for Tequila/Mezcal, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the US. The most expensive cordials are growing in sales faster than anything. We’re not drinking less, we’re drinking differently. And those are just three of the insights we gain from the latest DISCUS annual report! If numbers are your thing, this is your episode of Agave Road Trip!

When 130 Tequilas are additive-free, does that matter anymore?

loubank@10ap.com (Lou Bank, Jay Baer, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 2 Apr 2026 05:00:00 +0000

In a recent issue of The Tequila Report, more than 130 Tequila brands identify as additive-free. So how do those brands distinguish from one another? What else matters to discerning consumers? Tequila Report publisher Jay Baer and I try to figure that out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Those Mezcal stories in the AP News

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 05:00:00 +0000

Earlier this month, journalist Claudia Rosel released three Mezcal stories via the AP. Some of the agave nerds derided the stories as “at least 5 years late.” But I’d suggest they didn’t understand the stories. Or maybethey don’t understand the lifecycle of agave? Or … maybe they don’t understand the average consumer? Whatever the case, I welcome Claudia to this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Does transparency ruin the mystery of Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Linda Sullivan, Lou Bank, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 05:00:00 +0000

In the December 2025 episode of his amazing podcast “The Curious Bartender,” Tristan Stephenson asks Foursquare Rum CEO and Master Distiller Richard Seale, “How important is transparency in rum?” And Richard’s answer was not at all what I expected. Close the kimono and call in Linda — we talk about the beautiful mystery of Mezcal in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Molcajetes, exploding hammers, and the makers of the world

loubank@10ap.com (Lou Bank, Alvin Schultz, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 05:00:00 +0000

That guacamole you just made from scratch? Well, did you make the molcajete you used to grind the onions, cilantro, chiles, and salt? Did you make the gunpowder and sledgehammer you used for the Exploding Hammers Festival? Even the makers of the world rely on other makers in the world and that’s what makes our world so special!

The dangers of Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, and AI

loubank@10ap.com (Linda Sullivan, Lou Bank, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 5 Mar 2026 06:00:00 +0000

We’ve already done a couple of episodes about the dangers of traveling to Mexico. But … the violence around the apprehension and killing by the Mexican government of cartel leader “El Mencho” in February 2026 led to a more heated public conversation on the issue. So, here’s a third episode. Spoiler alert: I think AI is a far greater danger than is traveling to Mexico.

How much does a mezcalero make per bottle?

loubank@10ap.com (Linda Sullivan, Lou Bank, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Even the lowest-priced bottles of Mezcal aren’t cheap. So that means the people making those spirits are making better money than the people making other spirits, right? Right???

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with wisdom from Devin Adams of Mezcal Mala Mia, Dalton Kreiss of Maguey Melate, and Anonymous Contract Brand Owner.

Are collectors ruining Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Some people buy bottles to drink now. Some people buy to drink later. Some people buy special bottles to share when special guests are over having a special meal. And some people buy to squirrel away those bottles that they expect they can sell for more money in a few years. How does that affect the marketplace for Mezcal?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest John Douglass of Pretty Decent, an award-winning Mezcal-focused cocktail bar and a boutique plant shop in Louisville, Kentucky.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Does the water matter in Mezcal and Tequila?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Feb 2026 05:00:00 +0000

Okay, so, first … yes, of course, water matters. Without water, there can’t be Mezcal or Tequila, both because you need it to make the spirits but more importantly, people make these spirits and without water, there are no people. With that out of the way … evolutionary biologist and frequent Roadtripper Daniel Moen checked in to ask, Why does water matter in Tequila and Mezcal? I immediately went to my old trope: About half the bottle or more is water. But then he followed up with, The water you're consuming when you drink Mezcal, that fifty percent is actually distilled water. And distilled water, by definition, is neutral. So … why does it matter? Or does it not? We wade into the issue in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with wisdom from Daniel Mohn, Eduardo Angeles of Lalocura, and Ari Marks and Michael Schallau of is/was Brewing.

Episode Notes

Thanks to Miguel Dimayuga Meneses for the cover photo of El Choforo working on the well project in Atempa, Guerrero — a project funded by SACRED Agave through a grant from 818 Tequila.

Shout outs this episode to Fiji water, Felipe Camarena of G4 Tequila, and the bio-digester project of Serafin Morales Cruz of Mezcal Alarii!

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Don Julio is the best-selling spirits brand in the USA

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Feb 2026 06:00:00 +0000

According to a story in VinePair’s VP Pro newsletter, quoting an article from Shanken News Daily, Don Julio in 2025 became the biggest spirits brand in the USA, measured by revenue. And this during a year when Don Julio was dragged through the mud. So, what does this tell us?

Episode Notes

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

Read the full story in Shanken News Daily (which requires a subscription) and subscribe to VinePair’s VP Pro newsletter (which is free).

Shout outs this episode to Shawn Miller, Don Julio Tequila, Tito’s Vodka, White Claw, Jose Cuervo Tequila, that UFC Cuervo ad, Tequila Patron, those Patron additive-free ads, Chava Rosales of Cascahuin, and tattoos!

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Eating vegan in rural Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 06:00:00 +0000

When you’re a vegan but you find yourself in a situation where someone has cooked a whole goat in your honor, do you eat the goat? When Marissa and I start talking rural Mexico, you can never be sure where the conversation will go. This time, it went to the conflict between our dietary restrictions and the diets of Mexico.

Episode Notes

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

Shout outs this episode to mezcalero Ildefonso Macedas Ginez, mezcal con gusano, Tide pods, Chava Periban, Chava Rosales of Tequila Cascahuin, and Ronnie Kaplan!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Agave Bike Trip!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Traveling the hard way to visit mezcaleres who make agave spirits the hard way seemed right to me. So I grabbed my cyclist friend Zach Jarosz and we set off from Oaxaca Centro on an Agave Bike Trip!

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But did you really make that Tequila?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Jan 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Slippery language can lead to misunderstandings. When a brand owner talks about their distillery, their agaves, their producers … maybe they’re just being sloppy. Maybe their claiming ownership. But what’s the impact of those claims?

Episode Notes

You can find Shawn’s article that inspired this episode here: “I know everything about how to make Tequila but I don’t know how to make Tequila.”

Shout outs to Sergio Garnier and Mezcal Ultramundo, Lalo Angeles of Lalocura, and the Additive-Free Alliance!

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A lot of talk about lote numbers

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Wed, 7 Jan 2026 06:00:00 +0000

Most spirits don’t have lot numbers … or lote numbers … or batch numbers. But some (a lot?) do. And what exactly do those numbers mean? Maybe nothing. Maybe a lot.

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Mezcal in whisk(e)y country

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

Scotland is known for Scotch whiskey. Louisville for Bourbon. But award-winning bartenders have opened agave-focused drinking halls in both places. What does it mean when Mezcal finds its way into whisk(e)y country?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest John Douglass of Pretty Decent, an award-winning Mezcal-focused cocktail bar and a boutique plant shop in Louisville, Kentucky, with wisdom from Rachel Bailey Palumbo of Chancho, a just-shuttered agaveria in Edinburgh, Scotland, and sister to the award-winning Hey Palu.

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Jim Beam, Old Forester, Copper & Kings, Alberto Martinez Lopez, Cinco Sentidos, Buffalo Trace, Michael Rubel, The Pinnacle Guide, Malort, and Fortaleza!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The secret origin of Chuck Cowdery

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

Not an episode about agave, agave spirits, or rural Mexico! For this special Christmas episode of Agave Road Trip I offer you the gift of Chuck Cowdery, the “dean of American whiskey writing,” according to the New York Times. When did he have his first drink? When did he have his first whiskey? For whom did he make his first cocktail? All that and more!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The problem with the Cadbury dark chocolate ad

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

This new ad for Cadbury’s Bournville “dark” chocolate is funny. But there’s a cost to that humor, and it isn’t to Cadbury. We take Goliath to task for attacking David in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Dark Matter’s Sleep Walk Chocolate, Lifetime Wells International, “The Last Tourist,” Hampden Estate Rum, and Appleton Estate Rum!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Attack of the 50-foot picudo!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

There’s a field of blue weber agave in Jalisco that SACRED has purchased. The plan is … well, a secret. But there’s a possible glitch in the secret plan and that glitch is the picudo, a weevil famous for eating agave. Are we going to let a famous weevil interrupt our plan? No — we’re going to bug out!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank and Greg Rutkowski of Finca 18 with wisdom from Isaac Arellanes Santos, an agricultural consultant, and interstitial fun from Agave Road Trip Poet Laureate and Official Troubadour Larry Beckett!

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to the the 818 Tequila-funded water-security project in Chacala, Jalisco, Emilio Sengar, Eduardo Aguilar from Telesecundaria El Manantial, and Sergio Garnier of Mezcal Ultramundo!

The cover to this episode is everything to me. The art is by Gilbert Hernandez — Beto, of Los Bros Hernandez, creators of the comics series Love and Rockets. When I was a 15- or 16-year-old kid, this comic book showed me that comics could tell any story. The magical realism that Beto and his brothers Jaime and Mario depicted in Mexico and Southern California stuck with me. I think a lot of the joy I feel when I’m traveling in rural Mexico now is the discovery of images that they planted in my teenage brain. I was a comics geek growing up — mainly Marvel with a bit of DC on the side. Then some of the alternative superhero stuff when that started popping in the 1980s. But Los Bros Hernandez showed me a whole different world.

And that art was colored by my friend and former Marvel Comics colleague Gregory Wright! When I moved as a 21-year-old kid to New York to take the job with Marvel, Greg was one of the first to welcome me, introducing me to the fabled pastrami-on-rye at the dearly departed Carnegie Deli! Long-suffering friends are the best friends!

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Does Whitexicans have para llevar?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000

There’s a restaurant that opened in Queens, New York, a couple months ago with the name Whitexicans. That’s a loaded word – loaded with enough implications of classism and racism that it sparked a protest. But it also sparked a lot of media coverage. So what does it mean that your place of hospitality has an inhospitable name?

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Ismael Gomez, The Great Gatsby, sound engineer Roy Sierra, the Instagram page of Whitexicans, Steven’s course Taco Literacy, and the neighboring restaurant The Queensboro!

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Giving Thanks

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 06:00:00 +0000

There have been so many things for which to be grateful this year. But, oftentimes, I find myself dwelling on the heartaches and regrets of the year. So Linda and I got together to talk about the great moments, to share on Thanksgiving. And we talk about how to help create more great moments before the year ends.

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Dre from Clavel, Chava Rosales at Tequila Cascahuin, Michael Rubel, Leavitt Street Tavern, Women in Spirits, Misty Kalkofen, Del Maguey, Ron Cooper, David Suro, Greg Rutkowski at Finca 18, the raicillero community of Chacala, Jalisco, Paolo Rodriguez, Kendall Jenner, 818 Tequila, Roy Sierra, Mezonte, Ben & Frank glasses, Expendio el Sacualillo, Serafin Morales, Mezcal Alarii, Temo Garcia, DC Chocolate Festival, the Heirloom Cacao Preservation fund.

If you’re looking to give thanks, please consider contributing to the Heirloom Cacao Preservation fund or help SACRED underwrite the installation of a bio-digester in San Dionisio Ocotepec!

The picture in this episode’s cover is from the inauguration of the well and cistern in Chacala. Included in the photo are Emilio Sengar, Atanasio Guzman, Omar Alejandro Rodriguez Cruz, Greg Rutkowski, Leti Bañuelos, and Adrian Rodriguez Joya, among many others!

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To AirBnB is human...

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 06:00:00 +0000

In the past decade, housing prices in Mexico City have climbed 148%, fueled largely by digital nomads and a tourism boom. More than 26,000 AirBnB units have taken over what would have been apartments for people for whom Mexico City is home. This past summer, that led to protests in the streets: “shattered glass, broken doors and furious graffiti,” according to a story in The Guardian. In our enthusiasm to visit a place, are we displacing the foundation of what makes that place so desirable? The people who live there? Should we not visit?

Episode Notes

Check out the other podcast Roy engineers, Heritage Mezcal! And Olga’s app, SheNix!

The sweet art in this week’s cover includes Manifestación by José Clemente Orozco!

Shout outs this episode to Hotel Stanza in CDMX and Agave Spirits Presents, the best way to get amazing, traditionally made agave spirits from families in rural Mexico, even when you find yourself at an all-inclusive resort! And when you’re looking to stay in a hotel in Mexico City, consider all of these wonderful options from Marriott!

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If you’re selling Mexican food, what do you owe Mexicans?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Nov 2025 06:00:00 +0000

If you’re a business owner who makes their living serving food or drinks that are rooted in Mexican traditions, or a brand owner who is selling spirits made in Mexico or, perhaps, made somewhere else but rooted in Mexican tradition, what are your obligations — if any — to the people who come from Mexico?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Lyanne Alfaro of Moneda Moves with insights from Arturo Lamas of Lost Lore Tequila and Primo Hermano Mezcal.

Episode notes

Check out Lyanne’s podcast, Moneda Moves!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why are agaves not going to seed?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Nov 2025 06:00:00 +0000

First I heard from Sergio Garnier that the wild lamparillos on his 24,000-acre ranch in Durango skipped a season. Didn’t shoot quiotes. Didn’t go to flower. Then I heard the same about the agaves in Guerrero from Damian Meneses from El Tigre. And Damian and I were in Jalisco together and he told me that the raicilleros were saying the same thing: none or almost none of the agaves are going to seed. So … what’s up?

Episode Notes

Check out Mezcal Ultramundo!

Shout out this episode to El Tigre!

“Do Trees Talk to Each Other?,” Smithsonian Magazine, March 2018

“Trees Talk To Each Other. 'Mother Tree' Ecologist Hears Lessons For People, Too,” “Fresh Air,” May 2024

“Underground Networking: The Amazing Connections Beneath Your Feet,” National Forest Foundation

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How do we protect Mezcal brand owners?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 05:00:00 +0000

There’s a lot of talk about ensuring that the mezcaleres get paid fairly, and that’s an important conversation. There’s less talk about the palenqueres getting paid fairly, and that’s also an important conversation that we should be having more often. But there’s zero talk about ensuring the people who own Mezcal brands get paid fairly. So … let’s talk.

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto and sharing from David Martin, Jr. of Dos Gabachos Mezcal.

Episode Notes

Check out Dos Gabachos Mezcal!

Shout outs this episode to David Suro, Lalo Angeles of Lalocura, SACRED Agave, celebrity owners, and Diageo!

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Check your luggage when visiting Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 05:00:00 +0000

I see so many agave enthusiasts visiting Mexico and not checking luggage. And Alvin Starkman, who guides visitors to Oaxaca’s palenques, sees even more. People … what are you doing? Alvin and I attempt to make the case to bring the case.

Episode Notes

Read Alvin’s article, “Mezcal Aficionados: Check your Luggage When Visiting Mexico”! And read all of his articles: Oaxaca Mezcal Tours, Oaxaca Mezcal & Pulque, Mezcal Educational Tours, and his blog on MexConnect!

Shout outs this episode to Del Maguey Mezcal, Mezcal Rambha, CH Distillery, Jeppson’s Malort, Dolores Kohl Education Foundation, the Kohl Children’s Museum, and Dos Hombres Mezcal!

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How does Mezcal find new consumers?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Oct 2025 06:00:00 +0000

According to the Comercam, production of Mezcal dropped in 2024. It went from 14.2 million liters in 2022 down to 12.2 million liters in 2023 and, last year, down again to 11.4 million liters. So how does Mezcal find new drinking buddies?

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The dangers of traveling to Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Oct 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The US State Department has changed their safety ratings for Mexico. The only places in the country where, according to the US State Department, you can just go as freely as you might to, say, Washington, DC, would be Campeche and Yucatan. Everywhere else in Mexico it’s suggested that you should “exercise increased caution.” Some places I love to go, like Jalisco, Baja California, Chiapas, and Queretaro, I’m told I should “reconsider travel.” And my beloved Michoacan and Guerrero are “do not travel” zones, according to the US State Department. So … what does this mean for gringx bartenders?

Episode Notes

That realization of the broader stories that could be told through the medium didn’t redirect the trajectory that I was on in the business side of comics. I landed at Marvel when I was 21 years old, where I made so many friends who are still friends to this day. The angry, sarcastic Greg Wright was one of those friends — is one of those friends, though now he’s neither angry nor sarcastic having become a gentle and loving father who now goes by the more gentle and loving name Gregory Wright. Gregory stepped up to color this amazing Beto art.

And the initial reason for commissioning the art? Since 2021, the National Museum of Mexican Art has welcomed me to help organize their annual spirited fund-raiser, Copitas de Sol. I get to drag in a bunch of spirits brands and a bunch of restaurants and bars, and I get to commission art like this. This cover will be one half of the poster for next year’s Copitas de Sol, which will occur some time in August. And wait until you see the second half!

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Mezcal by the numbers

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Oct 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Months ago COMERCAM released the 2024 numbers for Mezcal. But I just finally got around to looking at them. What do they reveal? To me, a lot of questions about the integrity of the numbers!

Episode Notes

You can find the 2025 Comercam report here and the AMMA site is here. You won’t find any relevant numbers but the CIDAM site is here.

Shout outs to Tristan Stephenson of the Curious Bartender Podcast, Dr. Iván Saldaña Oyarzábal, Sergio Garnier at Ultramundo Mezcal, El Acabo Raicilla, and Lalocura.

Thanks to Roy Sierra for the episode cover and, as ever, funky sound design!

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How to take better pictures in rural Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The technology most of us carry in our pockets allows us to take such good pictures that we often don’t recognize we’re not taking great pictures. Professional photographer Anna Bruce shares her tips and tricks to help you up your documentation game!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Anna Bruce of Rambling Spirits, author of Tequila, Mezcal & More: Discover, Sip & Mix the Best Agave Spirits.

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Big trouble with ancestral agave syrup

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Sep 2025 05:00:00 +0000

There was sort of mini-boycott of agave syrup among bartenders about a decade ago, fueled by the industrial product contributing to Jalisco’s monoculture of blue weber agave. Or maybe fueled by a feeling that agave should only be used to make spirits – I’m still not 100% clear on that. And then there was the rise of the “new” agave syrup, which is really the original agave syrup, which is made in an entirely pre-industrial manner, in places other than Jalisco, from agaves other than blue weber. And it’s awesome! But it doesn’t taste like the agave syrup bartenders expect. So … what do you do with it? And, for that matter, what do you do with Mezcal that doesn’t taste like smokey Espadin and Tequila that doesn’t taste like the stuff that thwarted you in college?

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The difference between celebrating cultural heritage and committing cultural appropriation

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Sep 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Willy Chavarria and Adidas went to China and made "Oaxaca Slip-Ons.” Was it an opportunity to benefit the communities in Mexico who make huaraches? Or was it a multi-cultural slip-up?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Fabiola Santiago of Mi Oaxaca. It was recorded a day or two before Mr. Chavarria issued an apology for releasing these huaraches. You can read his apology here.

Episode Notes

To sign up for Mi Oaxaca’s online course “Introduction to Mezcal Through Indigenous Worldviews,” which takes place online Tuesdays from October 7 through November 11, click here!

To read Dan Saladino’s introduction to Eating to Extinction, click here!

That news I mention, about visas being issued by the USA to people who make a monetary deposit? Read about that here.

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The problem with that G4 music video

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Sep 2025 05:00:00 +0000

“That song makes me not want some mo G4.” That reaction to the music video “Sippin’ on Some G4” by Jeff Hodges and Los Henchmen, while nothing like the majority of commenters, was also not uncommon. Which is interesting, right? Because absolutely nothing changed about the Tequila in the G4 bottle. So … why would anyone stop drinking something they like because of a music video they don’t like?

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Does great Mezcal knowledge come with great responsibility?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The impact that a bartender can have on the consumption patterns within a bar is huge. Does great responsibility come with that great power? And if so, what exactly does that responsibility look like?

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Mijenta Tequila’s Maestra Selection No. 1, Burger King, ketchup!

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The dirty, filthy world of Tequila and Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 05:00:00 +0000

There was this video that my friends at Zignum released years ago that suggested that traditional Mezcal was not clean. That was contrasted recently in a conversation I had with master tequilero Felipe Camarena, who suggested that county water with all its chlorine and other chemicals wasn’t clean. And then maestro mezcalero Eduardo Angeles has a further take on what “clean” means. So what exactly does it mean in the process of making spirits? How much does it matter? Find out in the filthiest episode yet of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Michael Schallau of is/was Brewing with wisdom from Felipe Camarena of G4 Tequila and Eduardo Angeles of Lalocura.

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Sleep Walk Chocolate, David Hammond, Zignum Mezcal, Campanilla, Mezcal Villasuso, and 30A Distilling!

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How can a mezcalere make Mezcal without drinking Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 05:00:00 +0000

I’ve met at least a dozen mezcalerxs who no longer drink, but continue to make Mezcal. How do they do that, and still make delicious spirits? And what can bartenders and chefs take from this?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with wisdom from mezcalero Isidro Rodriguez of Rio de Parras, Michoacan, a poetic pause from Agave Road Trip poet laureate Larry Beckett, and a quick translation from Regina Gonzalez.

Episode Notes

If you enjoyed Larry Beckett’s poem, “True Words,” you can find it in Song to the Siren, a collection of Larry’s lyrics!

Shout outs this episode to Regina Gonzalez, Dark Matter Coffee, Greg Rutkowski of Finca 18, Budweiser, blue cheese, Arte Agave, and Malort!

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Why you shouldn’t say Latinx (or gringx)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Aug 2025 05:00:00 +0000

It feels like it was about a decade ago that I started hearing the word “Latinx,” and I liked the inclusivity – or, maybe, the lack of exclusivity – the word implies. But now I’m told it’s not the right term. I try to watch my language in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx (?) bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Dr. Héctor García Chávez of Loyola University Chicago with supporting wisdom from Erika Latines.

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What happens to Tequila when there’s no more red volcanic soil?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 31 Jul 2025 05:00:00 +0000

I hear and read a lot about how the red, mineral-rich volcanic soil is what makes this Tequila especially delicious. Or about the arid earth that makes that Mezcal so special. But … those are not forever things, right? If the minerals produce an agave that makes a delicious spirit, that means the agave is taking something from that soil — is consuming those minerals. And if they aren’t replaced … does that mean no more delicious Tequila and Mezcal?

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest environmental scientist Regina Gonzalez of SACRED with supporting wisdom from Rodrigo Mestas of Tequila Torrente.

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Yes, spirits can be aged in glass

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Jul 2025 05:00:00 +0000

In the world of whiskey, most geeks will tell you that a spirit won’t age unless it’s stored in wood. In the world of agave spirits, geeks will swear they do change. The agave geeks are right and, now, we finally have proof. It’s an evidentiary episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with Patrick Timmis of PKGD and a cast of dozens from Arte Agave Chicago tasting through a unique flight from mezcalero Victor Ramos to help demonstrate our point.

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to SACRED’s Futures program, Tales of the Cocktail, CH Distillery, Malort, Patrick Timmis of PKGD, Arte Agave Chicago, Eduardo Angeles of Lalocura, Dark Matter Coffee, Big of Big Works, Tony at Spilt Milk!

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Mezcal and forgiveness

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Jul 2025 05:00:00 +0000

I was watching that short documentary that PKGD released about mezcalero Carlos Mendez Blas, “Capitan Palomo.” And I was struck by the revelations in that film and how I think there’s something in Carlos’ world view that could solve the problems around immigration.

Episode Notes

If you haven’t yet watched “Capitan Palomo,” do that here.

This episode cover is from the Loteria illustrated by Jose Guadalupe Posada.

Shout outs this episode to PKGD, the National Association to Protect Children, Erika Valenciana’s “Brewer," Steven Pinker's The Better Angels of Our Nature, The HERO Child-Rescue Corps, Blue Oyster Cult’s “In Thee,” Lalocura, and Milt Rosenberg!

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Another way to taste Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Linda has her method for tasting agave spirits. I have mine. And they’re relatively the same. But we just learned a new method from Rosa Perez Hernandez of Campanilla and it blew our minds! It’s a breath-taking episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

This isn’t the first episode of Agave Road Trip to cover ways to taste agave spirits. Check out Season 2, Episode 7, “How to Taste Spirits Neat”; Season 2, Episode 25, “The only correct way to drink Mezcal”; and … there’s another with Linda but I can’t find it. Help!

Thanks to Agave Road Trip poet laureate Larry Beckett for his performance of “Prayer for What Vanished,” excerpted from his epic poem “Wyatt Earp,” which is included in the book American Cycle.

Shout outs this episode to the National Museum of Mexican Art, Copitas de Sol, Siete Pozos Tuxca, Mezcal Villasuso, Maria de la Luz at Campanilla, Regina Gonzalez, and Oro by Nixta.

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What can Raicilla teach us about Tequila?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Jul 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Ron Aleman of Taco Mucho knows and loves Tequila. But he’s now finding himself drawn to Raicilla. “I’ve never had one I didn’t like,” he says. And I have a theory about that. So I run that theory by Marissa Paragano of The Tequiladies in this Jalisco-centric episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

Shout outs this episode to El Bandido Yankee Tequila, G4 Tequila, Tequila Fortaleza, Cazcanes Tequila, Lagunitas Brewing, Dark Matter Coffee, La Venenosa Raicilla, PKGD Group, El Acabo Raicilla, and the DC Chocolate Fest!

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The precious world of thoughtful Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

There are people in rural Mexico for whom Mezcal is 100% cultural heritage. And there are people there for whom it’s 100% business — sometimes tied to cultural heritage but sometimes tied simply to paying for food, clothing, shelter, and life’s aspirations and pleasures. So what does it mean when that business side taps into the cultural heritage side to increase business? It’s a thoughtful, precious episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

Shout outs this episode to Ultramundo Mezcal, Mezcal Palomo, Chrissie Hynde, Sleep Walk’s award-winning Blanco Jaguar chocolate bar, red Solo cups, DC Chocolate Festival, Linda Sullivan, The Tequiladies, Connie, and Mezcal Lalocura!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are we really drinking less?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

I see it all over the news, hear it in conversations: we're drinking less. But then I look at the sales numbers from DISCUS and it makes me wonder, are we really drinking less? Or are we just drinking differently? It’s a complex math equation that we try to solve in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

You can check the raw data from DISCUS here.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Can Margaritas help us love immigrants

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

The fastest-growing spirits category in the USA is Tequila/Mezcal. The most popular cocktail is the Margarita. We love tacos, we love tamales. So … can all of that help us as a country learn to love the people who brought us these things we love?

Episode Notes

Shout outs to Alvin Schultz, Ben Quasius, Gustavo Arellano and his book Taco USA.

This episode was recorded about a month before the immigration raids in Los Angeles. The government’s violent response to the peaceful protests against those raids is, I think, evidence of what Alba says in this episode.

This Instagram post from my friends at Lost Lore Tequila says everything I’d want to say in a smarter way than I could

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Agave Road Trip salute to additives!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Jun 2025 04:00:00 +0000

At the DISCUS conference a few months ago, I was at a party that was populated by small-brand tasting tables. The one that drew my attention most was the one that was both least visited and most colorful. And my response to everything they were pouring was, Yes, please! But most especially, the White Chocolate/Raspberry Tiramisu whiskey! It’s an artificially inspired episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

Thanks to Al Murphy of Mother Murphy’s Flavors

Shout outs to the Distilled Spirits Council of the US, Runts, Skittles, Hampden Estates Rum, Elevate Innovation, Non-Alcoholic Phony Negroni, Zignum Mezcal, Ancho Reyes Verde, Mexico in a Bottle, and “Outspoken,” the monthly storytelling event at Chicago’s Sidetrack!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Blind tastings, decision-making, prejudices, spirits awards, and 818 Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

I thought this episode was going to be about blind tastings. And it is. Or, at least, it starts that way. But when you’re talking with Marissa, aka @tequilaencyclopedia , you rarely take as straight a path as you’d expect. So if you want to listen to a conversation about that … or about CostCo … or about the Agavos Awards … or how much I paid Marissa to join me on a trip to 818 Tequila, this episode is for you!

Episode Notes

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

Shout outs this episode to the Agavos Awards, 818 Tequila, Costco, and Marissa’s dream team, the Boston Red Sox!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chuck Cowdery drinks Mexican whiskey

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Chuck Cowdery was called “the dean of American whiskey journalism” by no less than Robert Simonson in the New York Times. So when I decided more than 250 episodes into this podcast to finally devote one to Mexican whiskey, I naturally invited my celebrated drinking buddy over. It’s (perhaps) the corniest episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Chuck Cowdery and additional wisdom from Ismael Gomez of Laika Spirits, Xaime Niembro of Whisky Juan del Campo and Gracias a Dios Mezcal, Txomin Alcorta of Whisky Prieto y Prieta, and Jonathan Barbieri of Whiskey Maiz Nation!

Episode Notes

Check out The Chuck Cowdery Blog!

Thanks to Ismael Gomez of Laika Spirits, Xaime Navarro of Gracias a Dios Mezcal and Juan Del Campo Whiskey, Txomin Alcorta of Whisky Prieto y Prieta, and Jonathan Barbieri of Whiskey Maiz Nation for the quotes this episode.

You can check out NOM 199 here and to see how the rules for whiskey in Mexico compare to the rules for Mezcal, Tequila, and everything else, check out this spreadsheet.

And if the tangent about feni in Goa got you going, check out Hansel Vaz’s Instagram page and Fazenda Cazulo!

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Are Mezcal geeks ruining Mezcal? Part 2

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Last episode we contrasted the good done through the consumption of heritage agave spirits with the damage caused by same. This episode, we talk about the damage done by the casual consumption of agave spirits. And coffee. And chocolate. And … well, everything. It’s a casual-destruction episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

Thanks to Xaime Navarro of Gracias a Dios Mezcal and Juan Del Campo Whiskey for the quote this episode.

Shout outs to Palomo Mezcal, Dark Matter Coffee, Chengdu Bistro, Rogue Ales & Spirits, and Chuck Klosterman and his novel Downtown Owl! (But also … go read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto. Like, now.)

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are Mezcal geeks ruining Mezcal? Part 1

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

It’s amazing and moving to see mezcalerxs whose lives have clearly improved as a result of the growing interest in agave spirits. But there’s another side to that story – or, really, multiple other sides to it: some good, some bad, and some … well, the jury is still out on those. We talk about those various stories in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Notes

This episode cover is Courtesy of Slim Pickens! Thanks, Slim!

The episode of “The Hidden Brain” that I was trying to recall is “Relationships 2.0: The Power of Tiny Interactions + Your Questions Answered: Erica Bailey on Authenticity.” So good!

My friends Jen & Adam Murphy have great Instagram feeds, if you’re a gardening nerd or a garden-in-a-cocktail nerd!

Shout out this episode to Jason Cox whose Cinco Sentidos brand of agave spirits is amazing! Equally amazing are his two (count them, two!) brands of Oaxacan rum: Alambique Serrano and Cañada - Aguardiente Oaxaqueño!

Shout out this episode to Mezcal tour guide Randall Stockton and his amazing pandemic program, Feeding Chichicapam!

Shout out this episode to Chuck Klosterman and his novel Downtown Owl! (But also … go read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto. Like, now.)

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Some agave can't be farmed

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 May 2025 04:00:00 +0000

When I first started drinking Mezcal, I was told that there were some agaves that couldn’t be farmed — that could only grow wild. And I still here that narrative some two decades later. And it still doesn’t make sense to me. So I did the only logical thing: I asked a farmer.
Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Tracey Vowell of Three Sisters Garden.

Episode Notes

If you’re anywhere near Chicago or Kankakee, order your farm-fresh produce (and dry goods like locally grown popcorn, beans, and oats) from Three Sisters Garden!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gringx bartenders can save biodiversity

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Apr 2025 04:05:00 +0000

In my consumer-focused tastings, I tell attendees that one of the big things I hope they walk away with is, they can lead a more delicious life and support a more sustainable ecosystem if they start drinking more than just Blue Weber processed in Jalisco and Espadin processed in Oaxaca – that’s literally 99% of what they drink now, and if they instead drink one of those two eight times out of ten instead of, rounded up, ten times out of ten, they’ll be helping to turn the ship away from the monoculture trajectory. And I ask them to ask their bartenders if they have an agave spirit that isn’t one of those two, so the bartender ask their beverage director to get something different. But … what if we could get the gringx bartenders to make that argument themselves? What suggestions can they make to put the agave spirits industry on a healthier trajectory?

Episode Notes

If you want to listen to that episode about flights, it’s “Mezcals flights or Mezcal cocktails?”

If you want to listen to that episode about biodiverse cocktail Mezcals, it’s “The Best Mezcals for Mixing, According to Agave Road Trip.”

If you’re a bartender who wants to visit agave spirits producers in Mexico who aren’t connected to brands, check out the Tequila Interchange Project!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Corn as cultural heritage

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Mexico has been purchasing about $3 billion of corn annually from farmers in the USA, the vast majority of that corn having been grown from genetically modified seeds. The Mexican government announced in 2020 that it would, in 2025, ban that GMO corn from the country, which was found to be in violation of the USMCA agreement of 2018. So now, the Mexican government has amended their constitution to identify native corn as an "element of national identity," which will ban GMO corn from being planted in the country – and "[a]ny other use of genetically modified corn must be evaluated ... to be free of threats to the biosecurity, health and biocultural heritage of Mexico and its population." What exactly does this all mean, for farmers in Mexico, for the environment in the Americas, and for the price of tacos? We try to suss it all out in this episode of Agave Road trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Dave Dyrek, retired farmer of Leaning Shed Farm, with quotes from Dr. Hector Ortiz of the Chicago Botanic Gardens and Chef Gustavo Romero of Oro by Nixta.

Episode Notes

When in Chicago, visit the Chicago Botanic Gardens! When in Minneapolis, grab a meal and a stack of tortillas at Oro by Nixta! When traveling back in time, head to the farmers market and visit Leaning Shed!

“US wins ruling in a trade dispute with Mexico over its bid to ban genetically modified corn,” AP News, December 20, 2024

“After trade dispute, Mexico officially bans the planting of GM corn,” Reuters, February 25, 2025

“Don’t mess with Mexico’s maíz: Constitutional amendment to ban GMO corn seeds,” Los Angeles Times, March 13, 2025

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The CRT is no longer the sole certifier for Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

If you want to listen to that October 2023 episode with Khrys Maxwell, it’s “The CRT loses their Tequila monopoly.”

You might also want to check out this episode: “The Birth and Death of the CRM,” in which MIA Chava and I discuss the end of the CRM’s monopoly on Mezcal certification.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Maguey and Madagascar

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Apr 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Check out Riker’s project, MadAgave, on the Web, on Instagram, and on Facebook — and consider making a financial gift. It will help support this important project and also help mitigate the damage done by the recent cyclone that hit the community.

In the episode cover, that’s head distiller Fomesoa, and the other crew members are Samba, Tsimireke, and Freddy.

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You pay more for Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Mar 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

If you missed World Poetry Day, it’s not too late to celebrate. Click here for the archived celebration with Agave Road Trip Poet Laureate Larry Beckett and August Gladstone!

Some numbers I culled from the DISCUS data over the past eight years:

If you just look at volume consumed, 2.7 billion liters in 2024

o Vodka: 667 million liters (24.4%), trending down a point or two last three years

o Cocktails (RTDs): 658 million (24.0%), trending up in a big way, double-digit growth every year

o Whiskey: 647.5 million liters (23.7%), trending down four-ish percent past two years

o Agave: 289.8 million liters (10.6%), trending up but growth is slowing

o Rum: 186.1 million liters (6.8%), trending down in an escalating pattern

o Cordials: 180.7 million liters (6.6%), trending down four-ish percent past two years, like whiskey

o Brandy: 105.4 million liters (3.9%), big hits past three years

If you look at dollars spent, $36.2 billion in 2024

o Vodka: $7.2 billion (19.9%), flat since 2021

o Cocktails (RTDs): $3.3 billion (9.1%), trending up in a big way, double-digit growth every year

o Whiskey: $11.9 billion (32.9%), trending down two to three percent past two years

o Agave: $6.7 billion (18.5%), trending up but growth is slowing

o Rum: $2.2 billion (6.1%), trending down in an escalating pattern

o Cordials: $2.8 billion (7.7%), trending down but not at same pace as volume

o Brandy: $2.1 billion (5.8%), big hits past three years

If you look at dollars spent per liter, bearing in mind that inflation between 2016 and 2024 was 30.7%,

o Vodka: $10.83, up 11% since 2016

o Cocktails (RTDs): $5.01, down 23% since 2016

o Whiskey: $18.30, up 15% since 2016

o Agave: $23.17, up 25% since 2016

o Rum: $11.99, up 12.6% since 2016

o Cordials: $15.54, 13.8% since 2016

o Brandy: $20.24, 10.6% since 2016

You can get all the raw data and draw uyour own conclusions at DISCUS.

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How do you differentiate different Tequilas?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Mar 2025 04:00:00 +0000

Shout outs this episode to Cambio Tequila and Puesto! And Howard Gardner’s “Theory of Multiple Intelligences”!

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Is Mezcal's moment over?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 04:00:00 +0000

That one hit is from Australian Traveller: “30 of the best bars in Sydney right now.”

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Puntas: Drop-dead delicious or just drop dead?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Mar 2025 05:00:00 +0000

This episode was inspired by a post that Mexican distiller Tomas Nava made in the Facebook group Mezcal Society. His post was inspired by the entry for “foreshots” at SpiritsBeacon.com. The response from Tom Bartram of Speciality Brands gave me the excuse to reconnect with Tom!

Bonus! Tom’s puntas-filled annecdote!

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An American Distiller in Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Check out 30A Distilling Co. when you’re in Florida!

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A Tale of Two USAIDs

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

First and foremost, when claims are made about expenses by USAID or any federal agency of the US government, you can research for yourself at usaspending.gov. This is a great tool that is as close to absolute transparency in government as the USA has ever had. In the (literal) days since I recorded this episode (February 17, 2025), President Trump has signed an executive order that requires “radical transparency” of all government offices. In that very order, he highlights as an example of “how the federal government has wasted [our] hard-earned wages” this item:

Numerous USAID grants have come under review, including $1.5 million to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities.”

But he doesn’t share the Prime Award ID number or the recipient of that award. So you’re left to dig into that yourself. If you believe there should be “radical transparency” in the government, ask for those items so you can see, for yourself, that this claim is true. Or just go digging and try to find evidence of this claim. Or any of the others in that executive order or the many posts the president or Elon Musk have made.

Now … to watch the beautiful sermon from Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde — a wonderful call for mercy — click here.

To read the transcript of the bishop’s interview with “All Things Considered,” click here.

While I don’t believe I actually mentioned it in the episode, even as an apathetic agnostic, I’d still encourage everyone to read the letter that Pope Francis sent to the USA.

To read how the first Trump administration launched the Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative, click here.

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The devils in the angel share

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Shout out this episode to Steve Catbagan, Denver, and its groovy agave scene; Arik Torren and his Lot 001 Brands, and fog nets. And of Cambio Tequila!

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What do we call them when they’re not all agave spirits?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Feb 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Shout out this episode to Quiote Mezcaleria!

And when in Chicago go visit the desert house at the Chicago Botanic Garden. It’s as close to Mexico as anything 1,800 miles north of Mexico!

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What’s the deal with Rusty Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

The previous episode that inspired this episode is “The secret origin of Tequila Oro.”

Shout out this episode to Jason Cox at 5 Sentidos! Shout out to Tequila Cascahuin!

Maybe dibs in Chicago actually was documented…? Click here!

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Making old ale from agave syrup!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

That incredible beer-not-beer was made by tlachiquero Marco Antonio of pulqueria El rincon de Mayahuel in San Felipe, Guanajuato. I was introduced to Marco by Malena Villasuso and Juan Pedro Valdes of Mezcal Villasuso. This episode was recorded outdoors at Bárbaro Asador de Campo, an amazing table-in-farm restaurant in Queretaro, where we stopped to have lunch with our travel companions: environmental scientist and SACRED program manager Regina Gonzalez and Brian Rabon of 30A Distilling Company.

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The Secret Origin of Tequila Oro

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

This episode was inspired by a bottle by Victor Ramos, sourced from his tasting room in Miahuatlan, Oaxaca, labeled “Mensoncle de Arroqueno.” It’s the first time I’ve seen that spelling, but it refers to the heart of the agave — like mezontle. mesonte, and Mezonte. (Hi, Pedro!)

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Making Mezcal from the flowering agave

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Shout outs this episode to Oaxacan speakeasy Hembra, Marco Ochoa of Mezcouting, Sylvia Philion of Mezcaloteca, and Enrique Martinez of Metsal!

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The ominous threat of Mezcal tariffs

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Jan 2025 05:00:00 +0000

Check out the diverse selection of Mexican spirits being imported by Lot001 Brands! They have Mi Casa Tequila, Parejo (which offers Sotol and Lechugilla expressions), Rancho Tepúa (which offers Bacanora, Lechuguilla, and Palmilla expressions), Whiskey Maíz Nation, and Pelacañas Rum!

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Should we limit the limited-release Mezcals?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Dec 2024 05:05:00 +0000

Shout outs this episode to Mezonte, Off Premise: Wine, Agave, Whiskey & Craft Beer, and Alambique Serrano Single-Origin Oaxacan Rum!

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Why is Espadin the only Angustifolia in Oaxaca?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Dec 2024 05:05:00 +0000

Mezcal geeks love to run down all the varieties of Agave Karwinskii they can name. And when we talk about Agave Americana, we talk about Arroqueno and Coyote and Sierra Negra. But the most prolific of agaves in Oaxaca is easily Angustifolia, represented exclusively by Espadin. But that’s not the sole variety of the species – at least, outside of Oaxaca. So why don’t we talk about varieties of Angustifolia in Oaxaca? And is that a possible solution to the growing monoculture in Mezcal? It’s another head-scratching episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The 400 decisions of Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Dec 2024 05:00:00 +0000

In addition to our quoted friends at Cambio Tequila and Tequila Torrente, we also mention this episode Felipe Camarena of G4 Tequila and Greg Rutkowski of Finca 18 and 30 Topes Mixto de Agave, and Chava Periban of the podcast “Heritage Mezcal.” And Steve Dahl. And Dark Matter Coffee’s Star Lounge.

To learn more about the fascinating agricultural practices of Tequila Torrente, read “A Better Way to Grow Agave Leads to World’s First Certified Regenerative Tequila” in UnderstandingAg.

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The day celebrating the people who work at bars

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Dec 2024 05:00:00 +0000

National Bartenders Day is the first Friday of December. That’s December 6 in 2024!

Listen to Bridget’s podcast, “Served Up,” here! To listen to the episode I was on, click here.

Healthy Pour is a boutique coaching and consulting firm dedicated to transforming the global landscape of work. Founder Laura Louise Green has deep roots in the hospitality industry and does much of her work with hospitality folks.

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Another way to bring the desert to your bar

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

If you’re in Santiago Matatlan, Oaxaca, go drink pulque at Reina Cortes Cortes’s A&V La Casa del Pulque. Drink the pulque — all the pulque — but also check out Quiote de Maguey Escabeche from Mujeres 5 Estrellas!

Check out Lyanne’s article that inspired this episode: “Meet the Cactus Powering a New Generation of Latino-Owned Businesses,” Inc., September 16, 2024

Tia Lupita Foods offers a range of chips made from nopales!

Nemi Snacks has a line of nopale-based chips, too, but shaped more like Takis — but significantly healthier!

The movie Lyanne references is Flamin’ Hot!

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A different approach to additive-free Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

If you’re not already all over the Tequila Matchmaker app, you should be. Scarlet and Grover have built an amazing resource for anyone interested at any level in Tequila.

They started the Additive-Free Alliance, a coalition of Tequila brands, retailers, consumers, and producers of other agave-based products who are dedicated to processes that do not use additives.

“An Undercover Operation, a Raid and the Fight Over What Makes a True Tequila,” Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2024

If you want to learn about the 1990 Nutrition Labeling and Education Act and what came before it, check out “History of Nutrition Labeling” from the National Library of Medicine.

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The physical cost of pre-industrial Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Shout out to Lalo Angeles of Lalocura for his insights about the damage done to the palenqueros who mill agave by hand.

Shout out to Jake Lustig of Mina Real and Mezcal Don Amado for his efforts to reduce smoke in the lives of the people from whom he sources his spirits.

Shout out to Neta for supporting the healthcare of mezcalero Celso Garcia.

Shout out to Dark Matter Coffee and Maguey Melate for supporting healthcare costs for some families in need in rural Oaxaca.

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Can culture and commerce coexist in a bottle?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Nov 2024 05:00:00 +0000

Want easier access to beautiful spirits? Add your signature to ShipMySpirits.org!

Live in Illinois and want easier access to beautiful spirits? Send a letter to Deputy Governor Andy Manar!

Read the article that inspired this episode: “U.S. Craft Distilleries Are in Crisis,” Food & Wine, July 31, 2024

That quote from Peter Holland, rum expert and Foursquare Distillery’s UK brand ambassador, appeared in “Could independent bottlers transform rum?,” The Spirits Business, September 24, 2024

Haven’t heard about Empirical’s Doritos spirit? Click here!

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What happens when they stop calling it Tequila?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 31 Oct 2024 11:46:03 +0000

Note that this episode was recorded on September 25, 2024 -- before some of the latest developments regarding additive-free Tequila.

Marissa is also a board member of Tequila That Cares, a philanthropic organization bringing positive change to the agave spirits industry!

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When did “smooth” become a dirty word?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Oct 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Dig whiskey? Dig the blog of the mighty Chuck Cowdery!

Want to know more about Hacienda de Chihuahua Sotol? Click here!

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The argument for pairing chocolate with Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Oct 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Thanks to road-tripper Shain Bela Lugosi in San Diego for pointing me to Oslo Sardine Bar!

Caputo’s offers the most amazing mail-order selection of chocolate!

Read Rowan Jacobsen’s Wild Chocolate book, on sale now!

When in Chicago, drop into Dark Matter’s Sleep Walk Chocolateria!

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Is Mezcal More Authentic Than Tequila?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Oct 2024 06:00:00 +0000

People in the Tequila chat groups get pretty outraged by things like diffusers and additives, and the basis for their outrage tends to be that these things aren’t traditional. But if it’s tradition they’re looking for, why aren’t they drinking Mezcal? Isn’t that more traditional than Tequila? And what exactly is tradition? It’s the most authentic episode of Agave Road Trip ever!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with wisdom from master potter Rufina Ruiz Lopez!

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There Is No Traditional Mezcal in the Marketplace

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Oct 2024 06:00:00 +0000

In the comments section of the Agave Road Trip Instagram page, Craig Reynolds — founder of the California Agave Council — wrote, “Unfortunately, there is virtually no significant amount of truly traditionally produced Mezcal left in the marketplace. It’s not environmentally or economically sustainable. An unfortunate fact that is difficult to accept.” I don’t accept that, but Craig did accept my invitation to debate the matter on this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Craig Reynolds of the California Agave Council.

Find extra photos and related links at agaveroadtrip.com

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The World’s Most Environmentally Sustainable Mezcal Brand

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Sep 2024 06:00:00 +0000

This Mezcal brand replants agave in the wild, uses solar power, and only cooks with certified wood. They convert their bagaso into biodegradable planters. They are a model of best practices in the industry. And they just left the market because no one supported them. We question what you really care about in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Argument for Pairing Tinned Fish With Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Gone are the days when jars of pickled eggs and pigs feet lined the back of a bar. But a bit of food in your stomach can sure help when you’re out drinking. So what should the new bar snacks be? And how can they enhance your drinks menu? Sustainable-seafood expert Barton Seaver makes the case for canned fish. We go fishing for a new bar-snack direction in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto with insights and wisdom from Barton Seaver, one of the world’s leading sustainable seafood experts and educators.

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The Most Important Tequila of the Century

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Once a century, Agave Road Trip goes out looking for the most important Tequila of that era. Now, there are still a solid 75 years let in this century, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say, this early in the game, I’ve identified that Tequila. And the winner is…

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Does the Tequila in Your Margarita Matter?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Sep 2024 06:00:00 +0000

I saw a number of posts online suggesting that, if you’re making a Margarita, it doesn’t matter what Tequila you use – it pretty much tastes the same. Linda and I decided to put that to the test with a jury of nine tasters. What’s the verdict? To find out you’ll have to listen to this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Politics of Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Not everybody who drinks Mezcal is politically liberal. Not everyone carrying a copita in their pocket is a Democrat. Not all of the folks traveling to rural Mexico lean left. In fact, probably most of the mezcalerxs themselves tend to be more conservative. In this politically hot season, it’s maybe a good idea to consider that the person across the bar from you maybe loves Mezcal as much as you do, but doesn’t have the same political beliefs as you. It’s an all-purple episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Did Salsa Change Gringos or Did Gringos Change Salsa?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Aug 2024 06:00:00 +0000

A recent article in the New York Times suggested, "As more foreigners, especially Americans, visit or move to Mexico City, some taco shops have lowered the heat in their sauces. Not everyone is happy.” That makes me think about how foreign consumption of Tequila and Mezcal have also influenced the flavors — and the recipes — of those other landmarks of Mexican cultural heritage. And it makes me think about how salsa, Tequila, and Mezcal have changed daily life in the USA. It’s a cross-cultural episode of Agave Road Trip!

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De-caf, Non-fat Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Aug 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Eric Kozlik of Modern Bar Cart shared with me an email exchange he’d had with a PR agency, where their selling point for a new Bourbon was that it was made using a "proprietary heirloom corn.” That made me think about Tequilas that are labeled “gluten-free.” Which made Eric think of “non-GMO.” Which made me think about the difference between “still strength” and “cask-strength,” and between casks and barrels. Which led to both of us deciding to stop thinking and start recording — which is usually how we make each episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Eric Kozlik of Modern Bar Cart.

Find extra photos and related links at agaveroadtrip.com

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Mezcal Is Smoky Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Aug 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Mezcal geeks and agave nerds get hot under the collar when someone suggests that Mezcal is smoky Tequila. But … isn’t it? It’s a fire-starter episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Uncertified Mezcal Can Kill You

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Aug 2024 06:00:00 +0000

It’s true: An uncertified agave spirit can kill you. But so can a certified Mezcal. Or a certified Tequila. So … what exactly is the point of certification? I had this … conversation? debate? battle? … with Sergio Garnier of Mezcal Ultramundo in another episode in March of this year. He felt like he had more to say and I feel like I could talk about this issue all day long. So here’s your sequel! (And, yes, the title is designed both to anger everyone who correctly indicate that there is no such thing as uncertified Mezcal as well as to increase search optimization.) It’s a leave-the-gun, take-the-cannoli episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal Flights or Mezcal Cocktails?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 06:00:00 +0000

No question but that most people in the USA are introduced to Mezcal through cocktails. But most bartenders I know — most people I know, in fact — prefer drinking Mezcal neat. Drinking spirits neat, however, can be intimidating to that cocktail drinker. So what’s the gateway? We talk Mezcal flights in this 30,000-foot episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Shad Kvetko of Dallas’ beloved Las Almas Rotas! (And Dave Tyda of Phoenix’s beloved BARCOA jumps in with another great suggestion!)

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Tequila Cristalino: Threat or Menace?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Jul 2024 06:00:00 +0000

You can’t log onto a Facebook Tequila group without seeing Cristalino Tequila derided, abused, and generally treated as some kind of punch line. But … do those user groups reflect the average consumer? Does the average consumer matter as much as the more highly engaged consumers that populate these online groups? And does consumption itself matter as much as cultural heritage? And why do I like the average Tequila Cristalino more than I like the average Tequila? That’s what I discuss with my past self on this time-travel episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Lou Bank from the Past and filled with interview clips from Jaime Salas of Proximo and Jose Cuervo Tequila; Juan Eduardo Nuñez of Tequila El Viejito; Tequila-geek royalty Khrys Maxwell; dean of American whiskey journalism, Chuck Cowdery, and Barbara Engelskirchen from the National Museum of Mexican Art.

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Beverage Testing Institute Does Not Say Mezcal Is the Purest Distilled Alcohol

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Jul 2024 06:00:00 +0000

“According to the Beverage Testing Institute of Chicago in Illinois, mezcal is the purest distillate or alcohol that exists on the planet and the noblest with the human body.” Or, at least, that’s the oft-repeated quote that comes up every several months and drives the folks at the Beverage Testing Institute crazy. So I’ve invited Andrew Moldenhauer, their Director, on to clear up the confusion.

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Horse Piss, Arm Pits, and Other Mezcal Additives

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Jul 2024 06:00:00 +0000

I like to talk about the 400 decisions that a mezcalerx makes that determines how an agave spirit tastes. But there are other elements beyond their decisions … natural elements that find their way into the process … that also have an impact on what goes into the bottle. We’re taking shots in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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When Did Tequila Stop Being Fun?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 10:02:14 +0000

It’s all in the eye of the beholder, I know. But when I think about what Tequila was back in the ‘80s and ‘90s … it was a catalyst for fun. I had a coworker who thought “tequila” was Spanish for “dancing on tables.” And I still see that, though mainly in Mexico. Here in the USA, it’s become so serious. Or maybe I just don’t go to the right places or hang out with the right people. But I’m left wondering … when did Tequila stop being fun? When did they add Tequila Académico to the Norma? We’re taking shots in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto and quotes from James Miller of El Bandido Yankee Tequila and Jaime Salas from Proximo Spirits.

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Yes, There Can Be Additives in Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 06:00:00 +0000

In the past several weeks, I have seen in numerous online forums the misstatement that Mezcal can’t have additives. And the misstatement that those additives can only be fresh fruits and raw turkey. So this episode is 100% just so I can post a simple link the next time I see that error pop up again. And it’s an opportunity to clarify the allowance of additives in all Mexican spirits. And it’s an opportunity to speak again with Alberto Esteban Marina, who was the Director General for all Normas in Mexico from 2013 to 2019, during which time he literally wrote some of those regulations. It’s a from-the-horse’s-mouth episode of Agave Road Trip!

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A $30 Chicken Dinner Is a Bargain

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Jun 2024 06:00:00 +0000

John Douglass of the multi-award-winning Louisville bar Pretty Decent is renowned for his hospitality. But he got a bit hot under the collar when one of his favorite customers complained about a $30 chicken dinner at a fancy spot around the corner. We break that chicken down — and your free chips-and-salsa, too — in this under-priced episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest John Douglass of Pretty Decent, a mezcal-focused cocktail bar and a boutique plant shop in Louisville, Kentucky.

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You Can’t Recycle That Bottle

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Jun 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Road-tripper Nathan Mealey checked in to ask, “How do you if a brand is ethical?” So I’ve started having that conversation with a number of people, coming at the question from different angles. This first answer considers packaging — specifically glass bottles. We think of those glasses as recyclable. But … are they? It’s a myth-busting episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest William Bahan of W. Bahan, a Los Angeles-based firm that provides branding, identity, and package designs for select clientele.

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Making Beer With Agave (And Sotol)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 May 2024 06:00:00 +0000

How do you turn 24,000 acres of wild maguey Lamparillo and dasylirion into beer? You bring Mike Schallau of is/was brewing to Durango to hang out with Sergio Garnier of Mezcal Ultramundo! Mike has been making beer since 2018 with agave I’ve brought him from Mexico, to fundraise for SACRED. This year, he made the trip himself. The beer is in the works and should be ready for your glass this summer! But this episode of Agave Road Trip is ready to be consumed now!

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Cocktails as Cultural Bridges

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 May 2024 06:00:00 +0000

I’ve heard a lot about how bartenders use cocktails as a way to introduce their guests to Mexican spirits like Mezcal, Tequila, Raicilla, Bacanora, and Sotol. And lately, I’ve also heard a little about using those same cocktails to introduce guests to the communities those spirits come from – turning the cocktail into a gateway to another culture. So I spoke with some bartenders about exactly that. Alex Dominguez checks in from Calico in New York, Matthias Ingelmann from KOL in London, Mariane Garcia from Copitas Cholula, NC Stevens from the nomadic Drinking Folk, and Aithan Shapira from MIT Sloan School of Management. It’s a globe-spanning episode of Agave Road Trip!

Photo Courtesy of KOL Mezcaleria and Eleonora Boscarelli.

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What Is the Connection Between Mezcal, Mexican Food, and Museums?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 May 2024 06:00:00 +0000

The first time I saw tascalate on a menu it was at Itanoni in Oaxaca. I immediately fell in love with the traditional drink. But finding a second cup – particularly at home in Chicago – was a lost cause. But now, years later, Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu has written an article about how tascalte has made its way onto bar menus. And that’s a reflection of a broader trend. It’s an everything-old-is-celebrated-again episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu.

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Maybe That 12-Year-Old Agave Is Only Five Years Old…

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 May 2024 06:00:00 +0000

I was having a conversation with Grace Gonzalez of Tequila El Mayor and she said something that brought into focus a thought that’s been bumping around in my head: We talk a lot about the ages of the agaves that are used to make Mezcal and Tequila. But there’s really no mechanism to verify that. And, in fact, since different agaves reach maturity at different points – even when they are the same species growing in the same territory – a statement like “we only harvest eight-year-old agave” simply can’t be accurate. So how should we be talking about the age of agave? It’s an episode for the ages on Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto, with supporting insights from Grace Gonzalez of Tequila El Mayor.

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Mezcal Moto-Rally!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 May 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Four wheels good! Two wheels more good? For the last few years, Nick Barreiro has organized a moto-rally for small group of motorcycle-and-Mexico enthusiasts. And while motorcycles aren’t my speed, I know they work for plenty of gringx bartenders, and I love this whole different way to take in the stories of rural Mexico. Learn about Nick’s international motor rally in this bitchin’ hog of an episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Nick Barreiro of Mezcal Moto Rally.

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What Can Cultivated Meat Teach Us About Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0000

In his New York Times op-ed about the imploding dream of cultivated meat, Joe Fassler writes, “[It] was an embodiment of the wish that we can change everything without changing anything. We wouldn’t need to rethink our relationship to Big Macs and bacon. We could go on believing that the world would always be the way we’ve known it.” And while I can’t see a direct corollary to Mezcal and Tequila, the way the word “sustainable” is thrown around over an afternoon of neat pours, it suggests to me that we think we’re saving the world one copita at a time. So … are we? It’s a plant-to-the-slaughter episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Evelyn Cotton Botello of Mezcal Amaras.

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Are the Best Bottles of the Year the Best Bets for Your Bar?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Apr 2024 13:05:40 +0000

Vinepair, Wine Enthusiast, Esquire … seems like every publication these days has their suggestions for what you should have been drinking over the past year. Maybe what you should be purchasing as holiday gifts. But these lists can also serve as sales tools for gringx bartenders! It’s a DIY episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of Seynasecreto.

Find extra photos and related links at agaveroadtrip.com

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This Bottle Protects Jaguars

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0000

We’ve done a lot of episodes about the importance of biodiversity, but usually we’re talking about plants. Sometimes insects. Bats, on occasion. So when we got an email from the gang at Alma de Jaguar Tequila about preserving this apex predator, I thought, yeah, let’s really sink our teeth into this subject! It’s a wild cat episode of Agave Road Trip!

Photo Courtesy of Tequila Alma de Jaguar.

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Are Agave Straws Really Better Than Plastic?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0000

A trend that’s emerged in the past decade are these drinking straws that are being promoted as made from agave fibers — the agave fibers being a byproduct of the process for making Tequila and Mezcal. The straws are marketed as biodegradable. But I think — emphasis on “think” — that these straws are at least in part made from plastics and are not actually entirely biodegradable. At least not in the way that they are presented. So I invited Natasha Tucker, the executive director of Mind Your Plastic, to have that conversation. Are agave straws really better for the earth than plastic straws? At the risk of giving away the answer, it’s another heartbreaking episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How to Pair Mezcal With Food

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0000

I’m seeing a lot more restaurants expanding their Mezcal selections, and a lot more events pairing Mezcal with food. So what do you eat when you drink Mezcal? I asked a bunch of industry folks that question over the last several months, then coerced food, science, and nature journalist Rowan Jacobsen to dig through those quotes with me to add his own thoughts. It’s a smorgasbord episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with guest cohost Rowan Jacobsen and insights and thoughts from Lanie Bayless of Topolobampo, Francisco Tapia of Tacovision, Grace Gonzalez of Tequila El Mayor, Mariana Alvarado-Garcia of Masazul, Kate Owca and Adrian Villarreal of Tahona, and mezcaleros Jorge Torres and Eduardo Angeles!

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Why Brands Don’t Certify Their Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0000

Since I first met Sergio Garnier, before he launched Mezcal Ultramundo, we’ve debated about the relative merits of certifying your agave spirits as Mezcal. We decided it was time to record our disagreement. It’s a what-side-are-you-on episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Secret Origin of Bull-skin Fermentation in Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0000

The fist time I tasted an agave spirit fermented in the skin of a bull, it was all anyone was talking about in Oaxaca. I tasted it at three mezcalerias, and all three bottles were made by Amando Alvarado Alvarez in Santa Maria Ixcatlan, Oaxaca. I made my way out to visit him a few months later, to see the bull-skin fermenters myself. And when I share his spirits at tastings, everyone is in awe of these bull-skin fermenters. But … why bull skins? Where did that start? I think I have the answer! And I share it with you in this speculative episode of Agave Road Trip!

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All Bino Mexcal Is Mezcal but Not All Mezcal Is Bino Mexcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Mar 2024 07:00:00 +0000

Did the small family producers in Tequila, Jalisco, eat the metaphorical and literal lunch of the big producers in Guanajuato and San Luis Potosi at the 1893 World’s Fair? It’s a What If? episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Rowan Jacobsen Went to Mexico and All I Got Was This Podcast

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Feb 2024 07:00:00 +0000

I got obsessed with Rowan Jacobsen when American Terroir hit bookstores in 2010, and was recently re-obsessed when his podcast “Wild Chocolate” dropped into my feed. So I reached out and he noted he was writing a sustainability feature about Mezcal for Bloomberg’s Businessweek. That article dropped last week, but this episode was recorded prior to that. And he wouldn’t let me read an advance copy. So, instead, we just talk agaves and sustainability in general. If that’s your thing, this is your episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Food Journalism Is Still Journalism

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 07:00:00 +0000

How do you find reliable sources for information about adult beverages? This is a multi-billion dollar industry, there should be reliable places to learn about trends. But I keep seeing significant errors in articles about agave spirits — which leads me to question what I’m reading about other spirits. And food. It’s an “On the Media” episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Problem With the InsideHook Article About 2023 Tequila Sales

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Feb 2024 07:00:00 +0000

A couple weeks ago, I threw the Washington Post under the bus for failing to recognize that food journalism is — or should be — journalism. This week I throw myself under the bus for an article I wrote for InsideHook. Not because it fails as journalism — I’ll let someone else make that claim. But because I think it misses the most relevant point about the story of Tequila sales in the USA in 2023. And I attempt to rectify that here, in this mea culpa episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Why Don’t More Mezcaleros Own Their Brands?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Feb 2024 07:00:00 +0000

Why are there so few Mezcal and Tequila brands owned by the people who produce them? When I try to rattle off the names of brands of Mezcal and Tequila that are owned by the people who actually make those spirits, it’s more of a clunk than a rattle. Why is that? And why is that important? It’s an own-or-be-owned episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Problem With the Washington Post Article About Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Feb 2024 07:00:00 +0000

Do you want to preserve the biodiversity of agaves? Or do you want to preserve agaves in the wild? Because those are two different things, often at odds with one another. And you can’t have that conversation without talking about the reasons for the disappearing wild lands in Mexico. But that’s exactly what the Washington Post did last week, when they concluded that the biodiversity of agave is disappearing because “[f]oreign mezcal drinkers have adopted a taste for the wildest, scarcest agaves.” I wish foreign drinkers had adopted a taste for the wildest, scarcest agaves. And Mexican drinkers, too. But instead we’re all drinking spirits made from monoculture blue weber agave in Jalisco and soon-to-be-monoculture espadin in Oaxaca. And that’s the problem the Washington Post should have covered. So we do it here, instead, in this set-the-record-straight episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Sergio Garnier of Mezcal Ultramundo, with supporting insights from Dr. Hector Ortiz, conservation scientist at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

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How to Take Your Pet on a Road Trip to Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Jan 2024 07:00:00 +0000

Heather Morse traveled to Mexico City with her husband, Aaron. And her dog. And her cat. By car. From Las Vegas. If you’ve ever wanted cross the border in a car, with your pets, and make it back home with everything intact, this might be the episode you’ve been waiting for.

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Leave Tequila Alone!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 07:00:00 +0000

In a Wine Enthusiast op-ed titled “Is it time to leave Tequila alone?,” spirits and cocktail writer Kara Newman asks, “When it comes to pushing tequila’s boundaries, how far is too far?” Now, I tend to be a “head to the endzone” kind of guy, so I’ve brought in Ana Rita García Lascurain, founder and director of MUCHO, Mexico City’s museum of chocolate, to ensure there’s actual culture in this cultural conversation with Kara.

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The Cultural Heritage of Agave Syrup

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 07:00:00 +0000

There’s Mrs. Butterworth’s, and then there’s fine Vermont maple syrup. And the same extremes exist for agave syrup. But here’s the thing: the artisanal version of agave syrup has this whole cultural heritage aspect to it. And you’ve probably only been able to access Mrs. Agaveworth’s. Until now! It’s a sticky, chicken-feather-covered episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Wild vs Farmed: Last Pulque Standing

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Jan 2024 07:00:00 +0000

Gonzalo Alvarez is pursuing his master’s degree in pulque. Ivan Saldana has his doctorate in agave. Both tell me that farmed agave produces better pulque than wild agave. But on trips through Nuevo Leon, Cohuila, and Hidalgo, three pulque producers said the exact opposite. So … what’s the truth? They call me the Seeker, and I search low and high in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with insights from Aaron Campos of Dark Matter Coffee, fermentation revivalist and New York Times best-selling author Sandor Katz, and Michael Schallau of is/was brewing.

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What’s Wrong With Your Stomach

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Dec 2023 07:00:00 +0000

It started with a rumor I heard as a kid, that Maraschino cherries and bubblegum would stay in your stomach for seven years. Which led to a conversation about digestion. Which led to a conversation about fermentation. And Bloody Marys. And how your digestive system works. All of which is to say, Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock joins me for a meandering year-end episode of Agave Road Trip!

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There Is No Coffee in Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Dec 2023 07:00:00 +0000

Well, of course, there is coffee in Mexico. I’ve bought some at Whole Foods in the past. But my friends at Dark Matter — who want nothing more than to source coffee from Mexico — have run into nothing but trouble. So what can we learn from that? It’s a caffeinated, globetrotting episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Cult of Hospitality

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Dec 2023 07:00:00 +0000

A Liquor.com article I read earlier this year highlighted the number of hospitality workers who grew up in radical churches. That made me think about how hospitality itself is a sort of religion – depending on how you define religion. So this is maybe, to you, a sacrilegious episode of Agave Road Trip!

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A Game of Chicken With the Mexican Police

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Dec 2023 07:00:00 +0000

Maybe you were speeding. Maybe you weren’t. Either way, the Mexican police have pulled you over. Question now is, what are you gonna do, punk? Do you feel lucky? It’s a dirty, hairy episode of Agave Road Trip!

Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. Lou Bank hosts this episode alongside Ismael Gomez of Cruz de Fuego Mezcal while Dr. Steven Alvarez chuckles in the background. Then Rob Lopata steps in. And then journalist Lydia Carey. I guess I know a lot of people who have been pulled over in Mexico.

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How Not to Bring Mezcal Back From Mexico

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 07:00:00 +0000

I used to regularly come back from Mexico with a lot of alcohol — a lot. But in the last few years, it’s become significantly harder to get bottles back. And I think I know why. It’s a smuggler’s-blues episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Giving Tuesday

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Nov 2023 07:00:00 +0000

On this Day of Thanks, I ponder why Giving Tuesday isn’t Giving Thursday — why we aren’t giving thanks on Thanksgiving. It’s a thankless episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Beautiful Inconsistencies of Coffee and Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 07:00:00 +0000

It's impossible with coffee beans to get consistency in flavors and aromas from one harvest to the next. Add in the processing of those beans into that morning drug that starts most of our days and … still more barriers to consistency. Which reminds me so much of the things that I love about agave spirits. It’s yet another inconsistent episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How to Welcome the Mezcal Curious

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Nov 2023 07:00:00 +0000

With all the press, all the talk, all the social-media posts, there are always people looking to find out what this Mezcal thing is all about. So what’s the best way to introduce them to these spirits? It’s a welcome-to-the-newbies episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Church of Our Lady of Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Nov 2023 06:00:00 +0000

A preachment, dear friends, you are about to receive, on Mayahuel, nicotine, and the temptations of maguey. I’ve heard that all sorts of things in the world of agave spirits are sacred and should be treated with respect. But that begs the question, what does it mean to respect something? Or, more importantly, what constitutes disrespect? We bat that concept around in this unholy episode of Agave Road Trip!

Photo Courtesy of CHema Skandal!

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Mexican Hand Gestures in a Mezcaleria

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 06:00:00 +0000

I’m accustomed to people making hand gestures at me, whether in the USA or Mexico. And I’m generally able to understand those gestures in my home country. But just as I don’t understand the spoken language in Mexico, I’m a bit lost on these gestures, too. Luckily, on this specific Agave Road Trip, I have a couple of interpreters to help. Hands are flying in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Should You Worry About Plastic in Your Water-Bottle Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 06:00:00 +0000

The best stuff is always in plastic water bottles — that’s a thing I hear from a lot of Mezcal geeks. But lately I’ve been reading a lot of stories in the news about how most of us have plastic in our blood stream. And that’s got me wondering … is the stuff brought back from Mexico in plastic water bottles really the best stuff, then? Or am I just drinking myself to death in an unexpected way? Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock plastic-coats this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Best Mezcals for Mixing, According to Agave Road Trip

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Oct 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Price certainly has to be a factor when considering which Mezcals you stock in your well. And flavor, of course. But what about the environmental impact? Here are six lower-priced Mezcals (and a Bacanora and a Sotol) that you can use for high-volume cocktails that won’t break the bank and don’t threaten the bio-diversity of Oaxaca. It’s a Punch-and-Judy episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The CRT Loses Their Tequila Monopoly

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Oct 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Back in May 2021, Chava and I recorded an episode titled “The Birth and Death of the CRM.” Alberto Esteban Marina, former Director General of the NOMs for the Mexican government, had provided us with court papers that documented the end of the CRM’s monopoly on certifying Mezcal. Now Alberto’s come back to me with two court decisions documenting the end of the CRT’s monopoly on certifying Tequila. What does that mean for Tequila producers? What does it mean for Tequila drinkers? And what does it mean for Khrys Maxwell, Director of Tequila and Agave Distillates at Museum of Distilled Spirits, who has agreed to put himself in the line of fire by recording this episode of Agave Road Trip with me? You’ll have to listen to find out!

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Espresso Martinis Are a Lie

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Sep 2023 05:41:38 +0000

The espresso martini is quickly becoming the go-to cocktail at bars. But is it really an espresso martini? Or are they using cold brewed coffee? What’s the difference? And is cold brew really the ideal way to make coffee? It’s a caffeine-fueled episode of Agave Road Trip, featuring Aaron Campos of Dark Matter Coffee as guest cohost!

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How the Hijuelos Killed Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 06:00:00 +0000

There are three different natural methods agaves use to reproduce, but only one of those methods promotes genetic diversity: growing from seed. And that’s how much agave is grown around Mexico. But Blue Weber agave? The only kind of agave you can use to make Tequila? No one is growing it from seed. It’s all genetically homogenous. So what does that mean for the future of Tequila? It’s another doomsday episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Contagious Patience of Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 11:37:46 +0000

The best agave spirits require a lot of patience. It takes an awful lot of time for the agave to mature, it can take a lot of time to get to the mezcaleros who make the best spirits, and you won’t taste the full complexity of those spirits without taking your sweet time sipping them. Ismael Gomez of Cruz de Fuego Mezcal thinks all of the patience required has had an effect on me. I try to talk him out of it in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Fast Mezcal and Slow Bars

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Sep 2023 06:00:00 +0000

The amount of time that mezcaleros take to make their spirits is an essential ingredient in the process. But it’s also in stark contrast to the amount of time that gringx bartenders have to share those agave spirits with their guests. What does that mean for those guests? And the future of those spirits? We’re running hot in this episode of Agave Road Trip! This episode is hosted by Lou Bank, Dr. Steven Alvarez of St. John’s University, and Ismael Gomez of Laika Spirits and Cruz de Fuego Mezcal.

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The Bartender’s Guide to Skittles

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 06:00:00 +0000

I’ve been reading lately that Skittles are being banned in parts of Europe. That made me think of all the bottles of vodka I’ve seen in bars in the USA that are being infused with the colorful candy. So is this a way to make alcohol even more dangerous? Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock doesn’t candy-coat his response in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Chill Filtering: Threat or Menace

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Aug 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Almost all alcohol goes through some kind of filtering, and chill filtering has been one of those methods for … well, forever. But recently, some folks have been flagging this as an unacceptable practice. And if it’s considered unacceptable, you know I want to give it a try. It’s an anything-but-chill episode of Agave Road Trip!

Featuring Linda Sullivan, of seynasecreto, and Carlos Soto, CEO & Founder of Nosotros Life and Spirits.

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Mezcalarrhea: Some People Think it’s Funny, But it’s Really Hot and Runny

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Aug 2023 06:00:00 +0000

There are often-repeated inaccuracies that cause the general public to greatly misunderstand Mezcal. I call them “mezcalarrhea.” You know, like Mezcal + diarrhea? Because it’s usually people talking out of their butt. And because it makes me laugh. It’s a hot-and-runny episode of Agave Road Trip featuring Dr. Steven Alvarez, professor at St. John’s University and Ismael Gomez of Laika Spirits and Cruz de Fuego Mezcal!

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The Differences Between Tequila and Whiskey

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 05:00:00 +0000

I’m asked all the time what the difference is between Tequila and Mezcal. But, for my money, the more interesting questions is … what’s the difference between Tequila and whiskey? It’s a grains-versus-succulents grudge match in this episode of Agave Road Trip featuring Jay West of Whiskey Raiders!

You can find more from Jay at @t8ke.review, @aficionadosgroup, and @weekly.whiskey

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Chocolate and Coffee Are Antioxidants, but What Does That Mean?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Aug 2023 11:21:27 +0000

For years I’ve heard that cacao and coffee are antioxidants, but I’m left wondering … what exactly does that mean? Are they healthy? Is there a limit to how much you should consume? Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Ryan Aycock, breaks it down in this free-radical episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Tequila is Doing Fine but Mexican Beer is Killing it

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +0000

There’s been a lot of talk about the environmental damage being done to Jalisco and Oaxaca as a result of global demand for Tequila and Mezcal. Hell, we’ve been doing a lot of that talking. But … man, have you read about what beer is doing? You’re gonna want to set down that Modelo Especial for this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Spirits as Landscapes

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 05:00:00 +0000

In this conversation with Eric Zandona we try to address one of the elephants in the room: can mezcal flavor be powerful enough to convert a non-believer? Are these plants communicating a full culture through a glass or is this just a blatant exaggeration? Eric has been lucky enough to have tasted hundreds if not thousands of spirits from all around the world and he was generous enough to try and tackle why this may or may not make sense.

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Rules of the Road Trip

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Jul 2023 06:00:00 +0000

This week’s episode marks the third anniversary of Agave Road Trip! Chava and I celebrate by sharing the many rules we’ve learned for making a great road trip — and we get schooled by road-trippers Ben Schroder (Pensador Mezcal), Craig Thompson, Dalton Kreiss (Maguey Melate), Ismael Gomez (Mezcal Cruz de Fuego), Jon Darby (Sin Gusano), and Sergio Garnier (Mezcal Ultramundo), who have their own rules! Strap yourself in, because that’s the first rule of Agave Road Trip!

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Every Agave Landscape Tells a Bigger Story

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Jun 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Gringx bartenders like to tell the bigger story of mezcal, the story that goes beyond the delicious spirit to explain why it’s delicious — the thing that gives it that pulse. One of those things is the landscape from which the agave comes from. Eating to Extinction author Dan Saladino prods us to talk about the beautiful landscapes we’re taking him to on this Agave Road Trip!

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Never Use Espadin Mezcal to Make Cocktails

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 05:00:00 +0000

There’s this idea that’s been circulating around USA bars that you should only ever use espadin mezcal to make cocktails. But there’s this idea that’s been circulating around in my head that we should never use espadin mezcal to make cocktails. It’s yet another contrarian episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Some Drinks Don't Travel -- Pulque with the Hadza

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Jun 2023 08:51:24 +0000

Pulque is a drink of place — something you have to have near or where it is made. It doesn’t travel. But it’s not the only such drink in the world. Eating to Extinction author Dan Saladino compares pulque to a drink made by the Hadza hunter-gatherers. It’s a cross-cultural episode of Agave Road Trip!

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1% for the Bats

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Jun 2023 10:33:38 +0000

Our friends at Bat Conservation International have teamed with a number of other organizations to launch “We Belong Together,” a campaign in support of their Agave Restoration Initiative. The goal is to redevelop the foodways that allow bats to migrate from the southern USA to southern Mexico. So they connected us with Valeria Cañedo from Colectivo Sonora Silvestre and Centro de Colaboración para la Ciencia y Cultura S.C. to wing another episode of Agave Road Trip about bats and agave!

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To Keep Community Viable, You Have to Save the Water

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Jun 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Dan Saladino has traveled the world documenting the stories of our most endangered foods. He would argue that we need to protect them, for our future food security, for the good of the planet, and for the good of our own health. And Chava and I are all for that — but we’re also all for another person in the car to argue with. So we took Dan on an Agave Road Trip, and all you get is this episode.

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Can Plastic Save the World?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 May 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Yeah yeah yeah. I know. Plastic is killing the world. But it’s hardly the only thing. And in the case of ecoSpirits, it’s maybe also saving the world. We talk about the complicated path of sustainability in what’s sure to be another contentious episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What Do You Do With the Tiny Sips of Mezcal Left in Your Bottles?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 May 2023 05:00:00 +0000

There’s this concept of the infinity bottle in other spirits – where you take the last bits of favorite bottles, pour them together over time to make this ever-changing blend. But … can you do that in mezcal? Without getting kicked out of a Facebook group? We tamper with the forces of nature in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Ever-Popular Tortured-Agave Effect

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 May 2023 06:00:00 +0000

There’s an idea that mezcal made with wild agave is more delicious, because the agave lived in a hostile environment. But in the world of pulque, there’s an idea that the most delicious batches of that fermented beverage come from pampered, farmed agave. We check in with Gonzalo Álvarez-Ríos (who we call Dr. Pulque) and Dr. Iván Saldaña Oyarzábal (who we all Sir) to better understand the why and how and what of it all in this 150th episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Let's Talk About Maguey Salmiana

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 May 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Chava says this is the first of a series of episodes where we take a close-up look at specific agaves. I'm not as confident that this works. But, hey, you tell us. It's a Choose Your Own Adventure episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Regenerative Agriculture? Biodynamic Agriculture? Climate-Smart Agriculture!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Apr 2023 05:00:00 +0000

There are so many different approaches to farming these days, and so many different terms that, from the outside, feel like they mean the same thing. But how do they look from the inside? And which one best describes the agaves you’ve seen in rural Mexico? It’s a rhetorical episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What Oaxaca’s New Mezcal Tax Means for You

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Apr 2023 11:31:51 +0000

The average consumer doesn’t understand how the established taxes on mezcal in Mexico affect the producers, who pay a VAT of 16% plus a separate tax of 53%. Now the state of Oaxaca is adding a 4.5% tax to that – but only for some mezcaleros. And that’s going to have an even greater impact on these families. How? We break it down for you in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Cow/Mezcal Connection

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Cows, goats, sheep — it’s not at all unusual to see livestock roaming around fields of agave in rural Mexico, especially up north. And it’s such a happy, peaceful, idyllic scene. But how are those animals being cared for? How does that impact the agave? It’s a mez-cow episode of Agave Road Trip, and you maybe won’t want that burger with the works!

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Mezcal Sales in 2022 Were… Terrific? Daunting? What, Exactly?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Apr 2023 06:00:00 +0000

The Distilled Spirits Council of the US released their 2022 report detailing who sold what, how that changed from the previous year, and suggesting where the market is going. Such great information! So Chava and I went through the report separately and each identified three facts in the report. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we bicker over what those facts mean, what they don’t mean, and where we really think everything is headed!

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A Fistful of Pesos

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 04:04:46 +0000

We’ve had any number of conversations about what it means to pay a mezcaler@ fairly. But a better question is, once you know the fair price, how do you pay them? It’s a cross-border banking episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Do You Prefer to Drink Your Calories?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 05:00:00 +0000

How many calories do you consume daily? How many do you consume through alcohol? Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Ryan Aycock, tells us about the philosophy, “I’d prefer to drink my calories.” And he tells us about all the reasons that is wrong. It’s another uplifting Cocktail MD episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Can Alcohol Warm the Body? Or Cool it Down?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 05:00:00 +0000

Alcohol is nature’s great temperature regulator — it warms you up when you’re cold, and cools you down when you’re hot! Or … does it? Agave Road Trip’s Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Ryan Aycock, sets the record straight in this week’s episode!

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Can Drinking Snake-Venom Mezcal Kill You?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Mar 2023 12:38:47 +0000

If drinking mezcal that has snake venom in it killed you right away, there’d be a lot of dead people on the floor of the mercados around Mexico. But … could it be doing damage you don’t see right away? Our Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr, Ryan Aycock, the Cocktail MD, checks in for a check up in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Chocolate and Coffee Road Trip!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Mar 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Lou and Chava got to go on a week-long trip through Tabasco and Chiapas …. visiting cacao and coffee farms … with Dark Matter Coffee and Rick Bayless’ Topolobampo crew … and all you get is this stupid travelogue.

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Can Mezcal Help You Sleep?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Having trouble sleeping, pal? Think twice before you reach for that bottle of mezcal. Or tequila. Or whiskey. Or whatever. It’s a nightcap episode of Agave Road Trip, featuring our Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr, Ryan Aycock, the Cocktail MD! And it’s way better at inducing sleep than alcohol is!

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What Does it Mean to Support Mezcal Communities?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 06:00:00 +0000

It’s not uncommon when a new tequila or mezcal launches that buyers will ask the brand what they are doing to support the community from which they’re sourcing their spirits. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we talk through what that means – and what it can mean – through the lens of Chris Pastena, former co-owner of Calavera, a restaurant in Oakland that he and his business partner and wife handed over to their employees.

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This Car Runs on Mezcal – Agave as Biofuel

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Feb 2023 06:00:00 +0000

There’s a project down in Brazil that’s investigating agave as a source of biofuel. It’s funded and organized by Shell, and is a sort of extension of the biofuel project they started years ago that uses biomass from sugar cane in a similar manner. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we speak with Fabio Raya – a PhD candidate involved in the program – about how it works, when it might be a real thing, and what our cars might smell like when they’re fueled by mezcal!

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Do Consumers Really Care if Mezcal is Sustainable? (Sustainability Miniseries, Part 3 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Feb 2023 07:00:00 +0000

This series on sustainability was sparked by all the industry talk about consumers only supporting sustainable mezcals. And the IWSR released a report that supports that notion, claiming that nearly half of alcohol consumers say sustainability practices influence whether they buy from a company or not. But … do they? We get real in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Is Anything Sustainable? (Sustainability Miniseries, Part 2 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000

Last week we bickered about whether or not mezcal is sustainable. But maybe the bigger and more important question is, is anything sustainable? We get bleak in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Is Mezcal Sustainable? (Sustainability Miniseries, Part 1 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 07:10:55 +0000

There’s a lot of industry talk about only supporting sustainable mezcals. But … none of the brands are sustainable. Or, at least, not one of them that is being exported is sustainable. How can that be? What does that mean? And how does that inform what you should drink or not drink? Chava and I bicker it out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal is a Nine Million-Liter Monster!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000

VP Pro shared out a story about the “impressive” growth that mezcal has been experiencing for many years. Yet, for all that growth, it’s still just 9 million liters annually. Compared to the 527 million liters of tequila that are produced in Mexico, let alone the 13.5 billion (with a “B”) liters of beer…? It’s a literal drop in the bucket. But could it be on its way to something bigger? How will it get there? And what could that mean for Mexico? We prognosticate and procrastinate in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Rainbow of Problems with Food Coloring

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Jan 2023 06:00:00 +0000

For thousands of years, we’ve been adding color to our world to make it more beautiful — and cocktails are no exception. But before you add that dye, consider the advice of our Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Ryan Aycock — the Cocktail MD! He’s here to drain the color from your your face and your recipes in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What’s the Craft in Craft Spirits?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Dec 2022 06:00:00 +0000

There are a lot of distilleries referring to themselves as “craft” distilleries. But … are they? Who defines craft? And is craft a reference to flavor or to process? It’s a(nother) judgmental episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What’s the Big Deal about Bats and Agave?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Dec 2022 06:00:00 +0000

So we say it's about bats, but it's really about pollination. And we talk about all these other creatures that can do the job, but then … how would it damage the ecosystem if bats became extinct? Are they the only thing standing between us and mosquitoes? Dr. Kristen Lear, Agave Restoration Program Manager for Bat Conservation International, tells us what all the hubbub is about in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Can Coffee Supercharge Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Irish coffees, espresso martinis, carajillos, vodka and Red Bull … there are so many examples of drinks that combine caffeine with alcohol, with the theory that this will be the pick-me-up that helps you extend your best-night-ever. But do they work? We ask our Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Ryan Aycock, otherwise known as the Cocktail MD … otherwise known as the guy who punctures holes in all of our best fantasies. We’re wide-awake drunks on this week’s episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Agave Syrup: Threat or Menace?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Dec 2022 05:33:01 +0000

“Agave? I don’t know what that is, agave.” That’s what Oprah Winfrey said in a 2004 episode in which Dr. Oz warned of the threats of refined sugar and listed his suggestions for substitute sweeteners. Agave nectar was top of his list. It was the endorsement heard round the world, and sales have been climbing since. So why would some bartenders suggest banning the ingredient? It’s a sticky subject on this week’s episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What Makes Mezcal Taste like Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Dec 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Rosemary Smith of Black Snake Distillery in Australia asked us the question, “Does the unique taste of each agave spirit mainly come from its sugar source or the crushed fibers and juice?” So, of course, we fought over the answer! It’s a chicken-or-the-egg episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal: The Aphrodisiac that Makes you Strong as a Rhino

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Nov 2022 06:00:00 +0000

It’s pretty common, when we visit mezcaleros, that they’ll pull out a bottle and tell us it’s a special blend that serves as an aphrodisiac. Or Mexican Viagra. But … is that even possible? We ask Cocktail MD Ryan Aycock for the straight scoop, and somehow detour off into avocados and balut. It’s an eat-your-heart-out episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Long, Long History of Aging Mezcal in a Barrel

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 05:51:02 +0000

There’s a school of thought that suggests that aging mezcal in wood isn’t traditional, and that the changes imparted by the barrel distract from the flavors and aromas of the agave. And, sure, there are some communities where the mezcaleros would never age in anything other than glass for those exact reasons. But you don’t have to travel very far from those palenques to find villages where — for hundreds of years — they’ve been aging mezcal in wood. It’s a kick-in-the-pants episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Why Lou Says “Agave Spirits” Instead of “Mezcal”

loubank@10ap.com (Lou Bank, Chava Periban, Roy Sierra) — Thu, 10 Nov 2022 07:00:00 +0000

Back in the 1990s, the Mexican government took legal control of the word “mezcal” away from the people who have shepherded mezcal traditions for hundreds of years. But legal control isn’t the same as moral control. But what does it mean to refer to an uncertified agave spirit as mezcal in the USA? This episode of Agave Road Trip is entirely about why I say “agave spirits” to refer in the USA to what would be called “mezcal” in the communities where these heritage spirits are made.

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Activated Charcoal Makes your Cocktails Black, Your Teeth White, and Your Poop Firm

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Nov 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Is it just me or is activated charcoal suddenly in everything? We’re joined by our Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock (the Emergency Room Doctor Currently Known as Cocktail MD) to talk about what activated charcoal is, what it does, and how it can deactivate birth control when it’s included in cocktails. But also how it can turn your teeth black, which is sort of another kind of birth control. Just in time for the holidays, we give you a lump-of-coal episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What You Don’t Know About Pulque, Part Two

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Oct 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Pulque is fleeting — it’s here, it’s gone. But does that mean it’s harder to make than mezcal? Chava and I duke it out over a subject neither of us can speak to — and bring in academic Gonzalo Álvarez-Ríos, who we call Dr. Pulque, to settle the matter. And we somehow land on the rare red pulque. It’s a full liter of an episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What You Don't Know About Pulque, Part One

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Oct 2022 05:00:00 +0000

A year or so back, Alvin Starkman introduced us to Reina Cortés Cortés at A & V La Casa del Pulque. We had a Bordeaux barrel gifted to us by the kind folks at Mezcal Sombra — one of the barrels they had subsequently used to age their Mezcal Repose. We thought Reina would ferment her aguamiel in the wooden barrel to make a unique pulque. And she did make a unique pulque. But not in the way we expected. Ever have a five-month-old pulque? We drink in something we never thought possible in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Hernán Cortés Declares Pulque was Always for the People

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Oct 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Chava found a letter from Hernán Cortés to Carlos V from 1520, and now we're pretty sure that everyone who claims pulque was only for royalty is wrong, the word "maguey" is cultural appropriation, and corn syrup is part of Mexico's cultural heritage. It's a what-happens-when-Chava-goes-academic episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Secret Origin of Rick Bayless

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Oct 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Normally, Chava and I interview someone for an hour, pull a 90-second quote from that interview, then build an episode by bickering around that quote. But when Chef Rick Bayless agrees to an interview, you just run the whole thing! Although Chema Skandal’s outstanding episode cover suggests that Chef was bitten by a radioactive taco, we get into the real origins of how he went from a childhood in a barbecue restaurant in Oklahoma to building the family-run empire that is Frontera! (Hint: it involves charcoal, walnuts, pecans, and gas station mole!)

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Your Perfect Thanksgiving in Mexico City!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Sep 2022 05:00:00 +0000

In November 2021, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Mexico City! It was great fun, but we learned a lot of lessons on the way. If you want to celebrate this traditional USA holiday south of the border, give this episode a listen and start making plans! It’s a fully stuffed episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Babies or Booze? Agaves Can’t Make Both… or Can They?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Sep 2022 05:00:00 +0000

All alcohol starts life as sugar, and the sugars used to make agave spirits like mezcal and tequila come from … agave! But the energy source that becomes sugar is also what powers the agave’s ability to reproduce. So if you allow the agave to reproduce, you’re also burning up the sugars you need to make alcohol. It’s a pick-your-poison episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Tequila and the Myth of the Low-Glycemic Index

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Sep 2022 05:00:00 +0000

There’s this idea that, somehow, tequila and mezcal are healthier to drink because sugar from agave has a lower glycemic index than other sugars. Our medical correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock, the Cocktail MD, punctures a hole in that idea — and also cautions that, if that idea had been drinking shochu before he made that hole, the idea will bleed more profusely. All that and more in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Is the Mezcal Worm Cultural Heritage or Crass Marketing?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Sep 2022 06:00:00 +0000

If you believe the mezcal geeks, no self-respecting mezcalero would ever adulterate their multi-generational spirits with gusanos or scorpions or any critter of any kind. But I tend to believe history over geeks, and history tells a different story. We share that story in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal Cristalino: Threat or Menace?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Sep 2022 05:00:00 +0000

When Maluma announced he was releasing a cristalino mezcal, a corner of the world went nuts: tens of thousands of his fans, excited to try it, and hundreds of mezcal geeks, outraged over a perceived attack on Mexico’s cultural heritage. Meanwhile, most of the world went about their day. It’s a keep-calm-and-carry-on episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Does Bottling Mezcal and Tequila in Mexico Save Jobs?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Aug 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Back in 2004, the USA imported over $400 million worth of tequila. Approximately 73 percent of that was tequila in bulk form. So when the Mexican government suggested they were going to change the rules such that tequila had to be bottled in Mexico … well, US companies went to bat to protect their multi-million-dollar bottling factories. And they succeeded! Or did they? And should they have? We release our bottled up frustrations in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Is Mezcal Pechuga Cultural Heritage or Crass Marketing?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Aug 2022 05:00:00 +0000

One of the things you hear over and over is that pechuga – the mezcal made (often) by adding raw chicken (or turkey or venison or name-your-protein) – is a special spirit made for celebrations. But then you see novelty pechugas, made with bacon or al pastor. So what’s the truth about pechuga? It’s a chicken-or-the-egg episode of Agave Road Trip! The cover for this week’s episode is provided by Eisner Award-winning designer Mark Cox!

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Why Does Mezcal in the USA Have a Higher Minimum ABV than Mexico?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Aug 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Mexican regulations require an agave spirit to fall between 35% and 55% alcohol by volume (ABV) to qualify for certification as mezcal. But in the USA, the TTB requires that same spirit to be a minimum of 40% ABV to qualify as mezcal. Why? Well, who knows? Not us! But that doesn’t stop us from blindly speculating! It’s another meandering episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Does Mezcal Help You Hydrate?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Aug 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Since mezcal is often around 50% ABV, that means it’s also around 50% water. Does that water help hydrate you? What about the water in beer, which is often around 95% of that pint. And coffee? That’s more than 99% water. So … what exactly is the deal with hydration? We’re under water in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Historically, Mezcal is Made with Steam

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Jul 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Read almost any of those “differences between tequila and mezcal” articles, and they’ll tell you that tequila steams their agave, mezcal roasts it underground. But in the cover to this week’s episode, you can see Chava and me sitting in the skeleton of a century-old boiler at an even older mezcal fabrica in Guanajuato. So when exactly does tradition start? We get the purists hot under the collar in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal Can Be Made From (A Lot) More Than 40 Kinds of Agave

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Jul 2022 11:03:52 +0000

How many different kinds of agave can be used to make mezcal? Well, heck, that’s easy: the regulations allow you to use any of them. So why have there been so many articles saying it’s “more than 40”? When 159 species … species … have been identified in Mexico?! We take the media to task in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How Much Alcohol is in Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Jul 2022 05:00:00 +0000

If you hang around a certain crowd, they’ll tell you that mezcal needs to be at least 50% alcohol by volume to be true to the cultural heritage of the spirit. And while that is certainly true in some communities, Mexico is not homogenous. We geek out on some 28% ABV mezcal in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How Dangerous is Mexico?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Jul 2022 05:00:00 +0000

When I tell people about my trips to Mexico, it's not uncommon for them to ask how dangerous it is. Chava and I debate the relative threats of Mexico in this not-approved-by-the-US-Department-of-State episode of Agave Road Trip!

Episode Art Courtesy of Jose Guadalupe Posada

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Who Put the "Vino" in the "Vino de Mezcal"?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 05:00:00 +0000

All over Mexico, there are communities where they distill spirits from fermented agave. And in a lot of these communities, they call that spirit "vino de mezcal." But "vino" means "wine," and wine, when it's distilled, is called brandy -- has been for the Spanish since before they ever came calling. So ... why do they use the word "vino"? Chava's mind is blown in this speculative episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Healthy Living Through Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 05:00:00 +0000

The cigarettes you smoke and the food you eat will kill you sooner than the alcohol you drink. But make no mistake: in the USA, alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of death. And yet, alcohol also brings people together, which has its own health benefits. So is there a healthier way to drink alcohol? Chava pitches Cocktail MD, Dr. Ryan Aycock, on agave spirits as the healthful answer in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Value of Spirits Awards Competitions

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Last year, Chava and I recorded an episode titled “The Best Mezcal is the Most Highly Awarded Mezcal.” We kind of panned the idea of spirits competitions as anything more than a guide for someone new to a spirits category. Then Chava was invited to serve as a judge for a competition, and now he’s a convert — both to judging and to spitting. Chava positions himself as a tremendously useful tool in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Attack of the 50-foot Chava

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Jun 2022 05:00:00 +0000

It all began with Dr. Ryan Aycock telling us about “The Effects of Alcohol and Your Shrinking Brain.” Then we had an on-air therapy session for Chava, who both wants to drink agave spirits but also wants to maintain a fat brain. Now… Chava lands on his solution. We do a spit-take in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Chava's Incredible Shrinking Brain

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Jun 2022 11:54:44 +0000

A few weeks ago, Cocktail MD Dr. Ryan Aycock joined us for “The Effects of Alcohol and Your Shrinking Brain,” an episode so titled because … well, drinking alcohol causes your brain to shrink. This freaked out Chava (and apparently several of our listeners). So I made him talk about it “on air.” What do you do if you like to drink agave spirits but also like your brain? We strategize options for protecting your brain in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Another Drink Towards Oblivion

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 May 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Okay, we really liked our conversation with renowned food journalist Dan Saladino, author of Eating to Extinction. In last week’s episode, we talked about the importance of consuming a diversity of options. This week, we talk with him about the importance of that diversity coming from a specific place. And maybe that place should be where you live. We think about staying parked in place in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Episode Art Courtesy of Ivan Vazquez

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Are We Drinking Ourselves Into Extinction?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 May 2022 05:00:00 +0000

We’ve talked a lot on this podcast about the importance of biodiversity in agave. But Dan Saladino takes that conversation to the next level, explaining how what we eat – and drink – will determine whether or not we can survive as a species. We have that conversation with the renowned food journalist and author of Eating to Extinction in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Effects of Alcohol and Your Shrinking Brain

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 May 2022 11:59:33 +0000

Mezcal is good for the soul. But what about the brain? And especially the developing brain? Dr. Ryan Aycock, the Cocktail MD, joins us for the scariest episode that Chava never wanted to record. Grab a glass of water for this sobering episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Image Courtesy of Carlos Palomares

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How Many Dogs Can You Bring Back from Mexico?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 May 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Maguey mutts! Palenque pups! Fido de mezcal! We did an episode about how much mezcal you can bring back from Mexico -- now we talk about how to get a dog back! If you’ve ever fallen in love with a four-legged furry friend in rural Mexico … or even a three-legged furry friend … we give you here the lowdown on how to head home with the ultimate bounty our neighbors to the south have to offer!

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A Small Amount of Alcohol a Day May Make You Healthier?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Apr 2022 05:00:00 +0000

For years, I’ve heard that a glass of wine each day is good for you — makes you healthier, helps avoid heart problems. So will a bottle a day make you even healthier? We call in Dr. Ryan Aycock, Cocktail MD, to answer this question. Get set for the best health regimen ever in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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When You Capon the Quiote Do You Get Better Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Apr 2022 05:00:00 +0000

The capon’d agave — the agave that is harvested after it’s begun reproduction, after its quiote has been cut, after it’s been left to develop and change in the field, healing its wound — is considered a special, beautiful, romantic source for making an especially delicious agave spirit. But not by maestro vinatero El Lobo de la Sierra in Los Jacales, Jalisco. Lobo breaks Chava’s heart by busting the capon myth in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Travel Mexico -- You'll Love it to Death!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Apr 2022 05:00:00 +0000

We love Mexico! We love visiting, love eating the food, love drinking the drinks, love checking out the art! We love buying examples of all of these things and we love bringing those things back home to share with our friends, to encourage them to go love Mexico! But … are we loving it to death? We question our intentions and impact in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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And Sometimes, Even When It's Certified, It Still Ain't Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Apr 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Profeco, the consumer-protection agency of the Mexican government, ran an analysis of 36 certified mezcal brands. They flagged a bunch of them for various violations, including the claim that Mezcal Gusano Rojo doesn’t even qualify as mezcal. What?! We drag out the dead horse that is the mezcal denomination of origin for another beating in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Can Mezcal be Medicine?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 05:00:00 +0000

Chava got a bug. After consulting the Ebers Papyrus and an appointment with Pliny the Elder, he chose a mezcal shot over a flu shot. Cocktail MD Dr. Ryan Aycock joins us to get Chava back on the mend and to answer the burning question: can mezcal actually be medicinal? Join us for a booster episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Immature Agave Makes Better Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 05:00:00 +0000

There’s a lot of moral outrage around the harvesting of agave that hasn’t yet reached maturity. But … when exactly is agave mature? By whose standards? And if the agave is getting harvested before it can produce seeds — which is always the case when you’re using the agave to make spirits — how is it a morals issue whether you harvest that agave a week before or a couple years before it reaches maturity? We light the fuse in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Super Sugar Tequila: Fortified with Four Essential Additives

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Mar 2022 05:00:00 +0000

How sweet it is! Mexican regulations allow up to 1% of your tequila to be additives, the four most common being sugar-based syrup, glycerin, oak extract, and caramel coloring. Purists get outraged by this — it’s cheating! But we’re far more interested in what this means from a health standpoint. So we called in Agave Road Trip medical correspondent Dr. Ryan Aycock. Cocktail MD gives us the lowdown on tequila additives in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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You Think Tequila is Better if you Pay More for It

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Mar 2022 07:00:00 +0000

The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States released their 2020/2021 report and … good lord, you people are drinking a lot. But the real news here is, you’re also paying a lot more for what you drink. So does that mean you’re getting better tequila? Or just more expensive tequila? We dissect the numbers in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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It Ain't Mezcal if it Ain't Certified

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Mar 2022 06:00:00 +0000

There's a Denomination of Origin for mezcal -- has been since 1997. The Mexican government gets to decide what is and what isn't mezcal. So if the Mexican government doesn't recognize an agave spirit as "mezcal," should we? It's another rhetorical episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Tequila: The Perfect Hangover Cure (Cocktail MD Special)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Feb 2022 05:54:09 +0000

Jon Darby got Chava drunk. So we called in Dr. Ryan Aycock, Cocktail MD, to help the most popular Agave Road Trip cohost deal with the resulting hangover and learn methods for mitigating them in the future. Join us for the biggest headache of our series in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mallory O'Meara Drinks like a Woman

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Mallory O’Meara says you’re getting it wrong when you offer women fruity drinks. "It's the women who really are the ones who are so much closer to the process and usually so much better at being able to discern different flavors,” says the author of Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol. Join us for a conversation about gendered drinking in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Photo Courtesy of Mallory O'Meara

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Is Texas Messing with Sotol?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Feb 2022 06:00:00 +0000

When people talk about mezcal and related agave spirits, they'll often lump in sotol. But it's not made from agave. But it is made in Mexico. But it's also now being made in Texas. And that's causing some waves. Is Texas messing with sotol? We skip through that minefield in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What Exactly is Artisanal about Artesenal Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Feb 2022 06:00:00 +0000

In 2020, 86% of all mezcal was classified as “artesenal.” Twelve percent was just straight-up “mezcal,” so … made in a more industrial way. And only 2% was classified as “ancestral.” So is “artesenal” as artisanal as the name suggests? And who knows what that word even means? Chava gets quizzed on the mezcal NOM in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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There's Mezcal for Geeks, and There's Mezcal that Sells

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 27 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000

You’re an agave geek. You bleed pulque. The stuff that tastes like blue cheese and jalapeños? Costs $150 a bottle? You love it. But that’s not what you’re moving. So we talk about what is going to sell to those customers in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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You Got Your Pulque in my Tepache

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Okay, so ... not all agaves are created equal. Some have fewer sugars than others. Like Bruto. So they add pulque to start the fermentation. But, wait ... that pulque is also made from Bruto. So ... how does the pulque ferment? Chava freestyles his science-like ideas in a car in Miami to try to explain what's going on in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Give That Juice Another Sniff....

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000

Do you wash that fruit before you cut it? Add salt after juicing? Freeze it? And before you drink it, maybe give that juice a second sniff...? We're joined in this episode by Dr. Ryan Aycock, Cocktail MD, for the lowdown on bacteria and how it can sneak up on you either in a gringx bar or on the roadsides in rural Mexico!

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The Perfect Recipe for Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Jan 2022 06:00:00 +0000

An ensamble mezcal is made from a number of different agaves — generally whatever has reached maturity at the same time. Or … is it? Maybe there’s a precise recipe that’s been handed down for generations? But how does that work within the confines of nature? We cook the cookbooks in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Puntas and Colas and the Heart of Distillation

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

When I first started learning about heritage agave spirits, I misunderstood the labels that noted “puntas and colas.” I thought that meant that what was in the bottle was a blend of the heads and tails of a distillation — but in fact the heart of the distillation had been adjusted with the heads and tails. But, then … maybe I was wrong about being wrong? We look closely at the cuts in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Many Different Flavors of Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

For decades we’ve seen flavor-wheels for wine, and more recently they’ve been appearing for mezcal. It makes sense, both in terms of market positioning and also trying to define the broad spectrum of different flavors you’ll find in mezcal and other agave spirits. But … what if banana tastes different to me than it does to you? The flavor training wheels come off in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Can You be Allergic to Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Dec 2021 14:51:29 +0000

You want to drink mezcal, but it makes you itch … gives you a headache … turns you bright red. Are you allergic to mezcal? Is that even possible? Agave Road Trip medical correspondent Ryan Aycock, MD, MS, joins us for another Cocktail MD special that’s nothing to sneeze at!

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Zero-proof, Non-alcoholic Mexican Cocktails

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

One of the hundreds of trends in the world of drinks right now is the zero-proof, nonalcoholic cocktail. Which is what we used to call an iced tea north of the border and an agua fresca south of the border. And, yeah, I recognize that it’s not simply that. But it’s also that … and more! We talk Mexican terroir, traditional herbs, and delicious liquid flavors in this week’s episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Should Mezcaleros Sign Exclusive Contracts?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Sometimes the palenquerx who made your mezcal is the brand owner. But that’s rare. Even being a part-owner is rare. Usually the producer is a free agent. And sometimes they are asked to sign contracts with the brand that is sourcing their mezcal — sometimes those contracts require exclusivity. Is that okay? We do a deep dive into the fine print in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Best Gifts for the Biggest Mezcal Fans

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 23 Nov 2021 13:46:43 +0000

Not gonna lie: Liquor.com has an article with a similar title to this week’s episode, and I know this because their source, Nacho Jimenez, suggested that one of the art prints offered by SACRED is among the best gifts you can get for mezcal lovers. And I know this because I suddenly got flooded with orders for that print. So I wanted to offer our take on the best gifts, to see if we could get the same kind of search-engine love.

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Liquid nitrogen cocktails! What could possibly go wrong? (Cocktail MD special)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Liquid nitrogen and dry ice can add some serious Instagram cache to your cocktail … but can also cause some serious trouble. Agave Road Trip medical correspondent Ryan Aycock, MD, MS, joins us for another Cocktail MD special that is sure to be a gut-buster!

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Everyone Talks about Mezcal, but No One Drinks It

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Nov 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Yeah, okay, that title is intentionally misleading. I mean, everyone hasn’t heard of it — if they had, we wouldn’t continue to see articles explaining how mezcal is “having a moment.” And clearly someone is drinking it. I mean, you are, right? But … how deeply has it penetrated drinks culture in the USA? Or in Mexico, for that matter? And how can you get more of your customers to drink it? We run the numbers in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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I Brought it Back from Mexico! Can I Serve it in My Bar?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Nov 2021 05:00:00 +0000

You went down to Mexico on some brand trip. But you managed to break away for a day and visit some independent agave spirits producers. You listened to our episode, “How Much Can I Bring Back?,” and now you have 120 liters of heaven that you want to share with all the angels who visit your bar. So ... can you? It’s the Law & Order episode of Agave Road Trip!

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A Paloma to Die For? A “Cocktail MD” Special

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Ryan Aycock is an emergency-room physician who attended bartending school at the same time he attended medical school — because, you know, it’s always good to have a Plan B. The result is that Ryan is acutely aware of all the things that can go wrong in a bar. The things that can result in your guests winding up on a gurney in his emergency room. This episode of Agave Road Trip is the first in a series of regular appearances during which Ryan Aycock, the Agave Road Trip medical correspondent, helps gringx bartenders understand how they can help keep their customers safe and healthy. We start with grapefruit, the unexpected killer! Who knew a paloma could literally be to die for?

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Tequila Sunrise and Mexican Moonshine

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 14:39:25 +0000

There’s this thing called a Denomination of Origin. The premise is, “Hey, we’ve got this special product we make here. You can maybe make something like it somewhere else, but what we are making here? It’s our cultural heritage. And we’re going to protect our cultural heritage.” So Champagne? That’s protected. Scotch? That, too. And Tequila. But is the Denomination of Origin protecting the cultural heritage? Or is it protecting an income stream? In this episode of Agave Road Trip, Chava and I chat about that under the lens of Raicilla, the other agave spirit from Jalisco that’s recently been claimed by the Mexican government.

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Better Soil makes Better Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 05:17:34 +0000

When you think about terroir, you think about a place. But that place is made up of soil, and that soil informs the plants that grow in it. So what does that mean for agave? And what makes soil good, what makes it bad? And, ultimately, what does that mean for wild agave versus farmed agave? These questions and more in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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All Tequila used to be Mezcal, but now Mezcal is becoming Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Oct 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Over the last few months there have been a flurry of stories in the news that basically boil down to “celebrities are destroying Mexico by starting tequila brands” and “gringos are destroying Mexico by drinking too much mezcal.” So Chava and I dig into those stories, argue about their relative veracity, and point out all the inaccuracies! It’s an “On the Media” episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Chava's Hair Malfunction

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 30 Sep 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Due to a hair malfunction, this week’s regularly scheduled episode of Agave Road Trip has been bumped to next week. So what will you do in the meantime? You'll have to listen to the shortest Agave Road Trip ever to find out!

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Mezcal on Ice? Hey. that's Nice!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 05:00:00 +0000

I think I prefer mezcal at room temperature. I mean, I’ve had it cold and didn’t find it as complex as room temp, which actually helped me get into it, in the beginning. But I’ve also had it out of the still and it was delicious, but … that had to have been at least warm, right? So what’s the right temperature to serve mezcal to your customers? We talk temp in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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It's All About the Water

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 16 Sep 2021 05:00:00 +0000

We argue a lot about which element in the production of agave spirits contributes most to the flavor of that spirit: the agave itself; where that agave was grown and what grew around it; the cooking process; the yeast that converts the sugar to alcohol, or the mezcalero who oversees the decisions throughout the process. But … when we’re drinking a 50% ABV mezcal it’s only half alcohol. The other half is water. Is that the answer? That water contributes the most to the flavor? We debate that and talk about water insecurity in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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I Know Art When I Drink It

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 9 Sep 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Chava spends a lot of time talking with me about the differences in how artisans are treated than artists. But it’s usually while I’m driving 90mph on Mexican toll roads, so I just nod and watch for cars coming at me. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, he forces me to pay attention to the conversation … which also includes an interview with and music by maestro mezcalero Temo Garcia and the International Congress of Peanuts.

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The Secret Origin of Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 2 Sep 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Mezcal has been “having a moment” for at least fifteen years. The New York Times, Food & Wine, Thrillist … heck, even Better Homes & Gardens are writing breathlessly about “tequila’s smoky cousin.” But … how did that happen? When and why did mezcal become a *thing*? We reveal the secret origins of mezcal in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Episode Art by @chemaskandal

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How to Start Your Own Mezcal Brand

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 26 Aug 2021 05:00:00 +0000

It seems like we get emails and calls on a monthly basis from someone looking to start their own mezcal brand. So here’s an episode of Agave Road Trip that helps point them in the right direction … and maybe helps gringo bartenders think about what they could ask that next brand representative who walks in offering “the best mezcal in the world.”

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You Can’t Judge a Mezcal by its Bottle

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Your friend’s been to Oaxaca, came back with a plastic water bottle of a heritage agave spirit. The only label is your friend’s chicken-scrawl on a piece of green carpenter’s tape. And you love that bottle. So when you see a new mezcal come to market in a fancy bottle, you think, Well, that can’t be good. Or … can it? We talk packaging in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Best Mezcal is the Most Highly Awarded Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 11:11:03 +0000

What does it mean that this mezcal won double gold in San Francisco? What does it mean to you, to your bar, and to your customers? What does it *not* mean? We talk spirits competitions in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Welcome to Agave Road Trip

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Aug 2021 11:37:42 +0000

If you're just now joining Agave Road Trip - strap on in! Over the past year we've traveled far and wide throughout the world of agave spirits and we've got many more adventures planned!

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The Golden Age of Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Aug 2021 05:00:00 +0000

You’re amazed by how delicious mezcal is. It’s got your attention in a way that no other spirit does. And you think, Man, where was all this amazing stuff just five years ago? Well, it was there, in the rural Mexican communities where it’s made. And it still is. Want to know how to find it? Listen in to this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What is Going on with Bacanora?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Jul 2021 14:03:01 +0000

Maybe you’ve heard of bacanora, that agave spirit from the north of Mexico. But you probably haven’t. Or if you have, you’ve maybe tried one or two. Maybe. And … why is that? In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we try to figure out why bacanora is the agave spirit that never seems to get its share of respect.

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Mezcal: The Pick-me-up Alcohol that Makes You Fertile but Doesn’t Cause a Hangover

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Before the director of the FDA shows up at my door with a warrant … the title of this episode, that’s sarcasm. But it’s all stuff we’ve heard from mezcal enthusiasts — and, to be fair, sometimes from the folks in Mexico who make these spirits. So is there any truth to these legends? Join us for a myth-busting episode of Agave Road Trip!

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They Make Mezcal in California! Or Do They?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Jul 2021 04:05:00 +0000

Is it cultural appropriation to make mezcal in California? Or whiskey in Mexico? It’s a throw-down episode of Agave Road Trip this week!

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Does Mezcal Change When Aged in Glass?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0000

When you age alcohol in wood, it of course takes on the properties of the wood. But what about when you age it in glass? Some experts say no. But experts aren't always right.... We offer our take in the latest contentious episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Intersection Between Wine and Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Jul 2021 06:00:00 +0000

When we think about spirits, we tend to think of a commodity alcohol that tastes the same from one batch to the next. And while that’s certainly true of many mezcals, there’s also a huge selection of bottles on the market that, like fine wines, have widely varying flavors that reflect a moment in time. So why hasn’t the wine world become obsessed with mezcal? We try to figure that out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What Does It Mean, that My Mezcal is an Ensamble?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 10:15:12 +0000

Sometimes they’re called mezclas, sometimes they're called ensambles, and sometimes that “a” turns to an “e” for “ensemble.” Some geeks call them field blends, as if anyone is doing any blending in a field. What does it mean when you see these terms on your mezcal label? Find out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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There’s Something about Kendall Jenner in a Huipil

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Jun 2021 05:00:00 +0000

When Kendall Jenner released 818 Tequila, social-media caught fire. It seemed to make a bunch of bartenders mad. Then she appeared on Instagram wearing a huipil and the phrase “cultural appropriation” started to get thrown around. But … for years now, Chava has been begging me to wear one of those traditional Mexican garments. So if I had, would I have been appropriating that culture? In this episode of Agave Road Trip, Chava and I talk about celebrity tequila, cultural appropriation, and how fine I would look in a huipil.

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Photo Courtesy of 818 Tequila

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I've Got a Theory About Long-growth Agaves

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Jun 2021 05:00:00 +0000

The agave has one mission in life: to reproduce. It spends its life generating the energy it needs to fulfill that mission. So ... does it tell us something when one agave takes significantly longer -- decades longer, even -- to reach maturity than another agave? I've got a theory about that, and I bother Chava with it in this week's episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Maybe Syrup Isn't All That Simple

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Jun 2021 05:00:00 +0000

Most cocktails call for a sweetener of some type. Maybe there’s a better way to make simple syrup? Learn how to sweeten your cocktail game in this episode of Agave Road Trip! We’re joined by 2019 World Class US Bartender of the Year Katie Renshaw so, you know, it’s not entirely amateur hour.

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The Birth and Death of the CRM (NOM mini-series #4 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Sun, 23 May 2021 14:59:15 +0000

Okay, to be fair, that title is 100% click-bait. Or, rather, it’s click-bait if you’re one of the agave geeks who even knows that the CRM is the body that certifies mezcal. Or, rather, that the CRM is *a* body that certifies mezcal – but *used* to be the sole body. And the end of the monopoly paired with the chaos over who controls the CRM … ? Well, that’s what the “death” part of the title refers to. Listen to this episode of Agave Road Trip if you want to join us in trying to sort out exactly what’s happening with this institution.

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If You Can't Ferment Raw Agave, How Do We Have Pulque?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 20 May 2021 05:00:00 +0000

I feel like the title of this episode also serves as the description. Unless you don’t know what pulque is. So … pulque is a fermented beverage, and it’s made from the uncooked agave. Now you get it? Good. So dive into this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Why are So Many Mezcaleros Named Don?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 13 May 2021 07:42:59 +0000

I don’t recall in which online forum I saw it, but someone asked the question, "Why are so many mezcaleros named Don?" It made me laugh, but it’s funny because it illustrates one of the translation problems with agave spirits. We dive deep into that problem in this week's episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The World’s Most Expensive Bottle of Mezcal!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 May 2021 06:00:00 +0000

A lot of people are blown away by how expensive mezcal is. But … is it? I mean, is it really? We talk the price of mezcal in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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If They Kill NOM 199, will That Kill Uncertified Agave Spirits? (NOM mini-series #3 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

NOM 006 defines what tequila is. NOM 070 defines what mezcal is. Bacanora has NOM 168, sotol has NOM 159, and raicilla … well, give raicilla a minute – they’ll get back to you. But every other spirit sold in Mexico is, in theory, defined by NOM 199. (Except pox – where’d pox go?) But in March 2021, the Mexican government proposed abolishing NOM 199. So where does that leave comiteco, charanda, xtabentún, aguardiente, and our beloved destilado de agave? In this third episode of our NOM mini-series, we speak with Alberto Esteban Marina, former Director General of the NOMs for the Mexican government and author of NOM 199, to get his thoughts on what exactly the abolition of Nom 199 could mean for all your favorite Mexican spirits.

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The Clay Copita: Authentic Hipster Culture?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

A lot of mezcal enthusiasts drink their mezcal from clay copitas. Hell, we drink our mezcal from clay copitas. And we think that’s the best vessel for heritage agave spirits. But is it? And is it culturally authentic? Maybe … if you’re talking hipster culture. This and more in the latest episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Who Decides if it’s Mezcal? (NOM mini-series #2 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Mezcal is a Denomination of Origin, kind of like champagne. It’s controlled by the Mexican government, and that government gets to define what mezcal is. Then there’s a body that certifies mezcal, and since that Denomination of Origin has existed, that has been the CRM. But recent legislative changes in Mexico have opened up certification to three additional certifying bodies. In this second part of our NOM mini-series, we speak with Alberto Esteban Marina, former Director General of the NOMs for the Mexican government, about what these changes could mean for those bottles of mezcal on your backbar.

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The Diffuser: Nature’s Answer to Better Tequila

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 11:38:30 +0000

Tequila collectors the world over hate the diffuser, the industrial machine that is used to turn blue weber agave into tequila. So Chava and I attempt in this episode to show that the diffuser can be nature's way to make a better, more accurate tequila. Maybe because we're contrarians. Or maybe because science. Find out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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What's in a NOM? (NOM Miniseries #1 of 3)

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Maybe you’ve noticed on the back of your tequila bottles there’s a number preceded by “NOM.” It’s there on the back of your mezcal bottles, too, but it means something different. Or maybe you’ve been in an online forum where agave geeks were posting about NOM 070, or NOM 006, or NOM 199. Well, that’s another shade of different again. But all those NOMs come back to one general idea: regulations in Mexico. Join Agave Road Trip for the first of our NOM mini-series — a primer on NOMs. I can’t promise there won’t be any garden gnome jokes, but I can promise they won’t be very funny.

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Drink More Wild Agave

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Some people will tell you that agave is at risk of becoming extinct. They'll tell you that you should primarily drink mezcal made from farmed espadin. But we tell you, gringo bartenders, that if you love mezcal, you should drink more wild agave, and you should get your customers to do so, too. Find out why in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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River Rocks, Mountain Rocks, Volcanic Rocks: Mezcal Rocks

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

We talk a lot about the 400 decisions that palenqueros make in the process of producing heritage agave spirits. That’s the result of using pre-industrial methods in fermentation and distillation … but also in that first stage of production when you cook the agave to convert the fructans into fermentable sugars. Maybe it seems like, okay, you cook it underground in a stone-lined earthen oven. But what kind of stones you use in that oven can have a serious impact on how your mezcal tastes, Join Agave Road Trip for a conversation about river rocks, mountain rocks, and volcanic rocks, and what they can mean to that spirit you’re drinking.

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What's Smoke Got to Do with It?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Before you can ferment those agaves to make alcohol, you’ve got to convert the carbohydrates into sugars. One way to do that is cooking. And one way to cook the agave is underground. And, yep, there are lots of ways to do that, which leads us to the question, "Do mezcaleros need to know how many grams of smoke per kilo are in their cooked agave?" Find out in "What’s Smoke Got to Do with It?” — the latest episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Looks Like Mexico, Tastes Like India

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 11:50:10 +0000

Clay fermentation vessels … wood-fired pot stills … glass garafones filled with clear liquid. From the pictures you might think you’re looking at heritage agave spirits in rural Mexico. But in fact, you’re looking at heritage feni being made in rural India. Learn about another community using pre-industrial methods to ferment and distill spirits in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Photo Courtesy of Fazenda Cazulo

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To Monte Alban Mezcal, with Love

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Mar 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Those school-boy days of drinking shots in parking lots are gone, but my affection for Monte Alban Mezcal will live on and on. In the mezcal-geek bubble that Chava and I travel in, you don’t hear a lot of love for the first mezcal most of us ever tried. But outside those circles? In the real world? Monte Alban is that best friend who can teach you right from wrong and take you from weak to strong. This golden-colored episode of Agave Road Trip is a love letter to Monte Alban — and it comes with a gusano in every download.

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Photo: Anna Bruce

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Tequila vs Mezcal: The Rematch

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 07:00:00 +0000

John McEvoy wrote what has to be the first English-language book for mezcal geeks: Holy Smoke! It’s Mezcal came out in 2014. So when John sent us an email complaining that we “left out the most important part” in our “Tequila vs Mezcal” episode … well, we invited him on to try to convince him that he’s wrong. Will it work? Can we change the mind of the man who goes by Mezcal PhD? Find out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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The Only Correct Way to Drink Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Mar 2021 07:00:00 +0000

If you’re not pouring a cross on the ground as a gift to the earth … if you’re not bowing to the south in gratitude to the land from which your mezcal came from … if you’re not performing a Mayan Cħa Chac ritual chant before that first sip, you may be drinking your mezcal all wrong. And if you’re drinking it in a cocktail? Be prepared for Mayahuel to have her vengeance. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we walk you through the only correct way to drink mezcal.

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You Can Master the Strange Secrets of Mezcal!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 25 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Master this strange power! Sway others at will! This episode of Agave Road Trip shows you in just minutes how to use the mysterious power of Mezcal to influence the thoughts of others, control their desires, and make yourself master of every situation. Send no money now! Listen first and when you have this marvelous power at your command and you can work wonders, then decide what it is worth to you. You’ll make others love you; strengthen your own will-power; develop a magnetic personality; banish fear and worry; improve your memory; overcome bad habits; realize your ambitions; increase your salary. If you have an average active and intelligent mind, you can easily learn the secrets of Mezcal. Find out for yourself in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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MEZcal or meZCAL? How Do You Pronounce It?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Chava and I sit down with a couple of copitas of mezcal … or, rather, he sits down with a copita of meZCAL and I sit down with a copita of MEZcal. And we fight over how to pronounce it, whether it’s important to follow the native pronunciation, whether it’s acceptable to correct someone else’s pronunciation, and whether it’s ever acceptable to order guac. This and more in this week’s episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How Many Agaves Does it Take to Make a Bottle of Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 11 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +0000

It’s crazy enough to think that every other alcohol is made from a sugar source — like grapes, grains, grasses, and starches — that take, at most, a year to reach maturity. Most, in fact, are harvested at less than six months old. But agave takes anywhere from three to forty years to reach harvest age. But it gets even crazier when you realize how many agaves are used to make a bottle of mezcal! Find out the answer in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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"Milpa" is Spanish for "Regenerative Viticulture"

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 4 Feb 2021 06:00:00 +0000

If you dip your toe into the world of wine, some buzz phrases you’ll see are “regenerative viticulture” and “regenerative agriculture.” But, really, when you get right down to it, isn’t that really just milpa? Join us for a conversation about farming practices in Mexico, and about how those farming practices impact agave spirits, in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Mezcal 2099: The Future of Agave

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 06:00:00 +0000

When we talk about the future of mezcal, the conversation tends to revolve around our fears of agave extinction. But there’s so much more to speculate on! That’s what we do in this episode. What will production look like? How will it be delivered? And what are the delicious innovations we should expect? All this and more in the Mezcal 2099 episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Certified Tacos

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 21 Jan 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Some restaurants in the USA are serving what they call tacos, but they’re skipping the certification process, so … should they be allowed to call their tacos “tacos”? Or should they have to call them “tortilla-wrapped meals”? And if they also serve uncertified salsa, does that double-negative result in a positive? We speak to the CRT (Consejo Regulador del Taco) to try to better understand the dangers of uncertified tacos in this delicious episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Another Freaking Gringo Looking for Jabali…

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 06:00:00 +0000

For hundreds of years, mezcaleros believed that you could not use maguey jabali (agave convallis) to make spirits — it foams so much, both during fermentation and distillation, that it was thought unmanageable. But a couple decades ago, someone found a strategy to manage the foaming. Now gringos go crazy looking for the rare, wild destilado de jabali! In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we speak with maestro Felix Angeles about his jabali strategy.

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Modern Bar Cart take-over

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 7 Jan 2021 11:00:00 +0000

Not an actual episode of Agave Road Trip, but a cleverly disguised episode of Modern Bar Cart, Eric Kozlik’s cocktail podcast for home bartenders and industry pros alike. Erik interviews Chava and Lou and proves that they actually can talk for more than 15 minutes.

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The Mezcal with the Chicken — Pechuga!

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 11:00:00 +0000

Maybe you’ve heard stories of a weird mezcal that is made with chicken. Maybe you’ve heard that it’s tied to celebratory rituals. Maybe you’ve heard that it’s precious and rare. Maybe all of that is right and maybe all of that is wrong. Maybe you’ll get the straight answer in this episode of Agave Road Trip! Or maybe not.

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Did Mezcal Save Fiestas, or Did Fiestas Save Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Dec 2020 11:00:00 +0000

The religious fiestas in rural Mexico are often colored by the heritage agave spirits made in the community — which makes for an especially fun night when those festivities also include fireworks and flaming toritos. In this episode of Agave Road Trip, we ponder the question: Did mezcal save the community fiestas, or did the community fiestas save mezcal?

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Photo Courtesy of David Vallejo

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Mezcal Cocktails, Cocktail Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Dec 2020 05:21:22 +0000

Some mezcal geeks use the term “cocktail mezcal” as an insult. But we know you love cocktails! So let’s talk about why those geeks are wrong and how to make a righteous mezcal that can be used in cocktails! This and more in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Photo Courtesy of Mezcal Amaras

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Bad Mezcal

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Dec 2020 11:00:00 +0000

It’s the cleanest spirit you can drink! It’s made from the best sugar source in the world! It’s made by hand! So … how could there possibly be such a thing as bad mezcal? Find out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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Who Says It's Not Mezcal?

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 3 Dec 2020 11:00:00 +0000

Mezcal can only be made from the heart of the agave. Or … wait? It can be made from the leaves? And sometimes that worm in the bottle isn’t just for tourists? What’s true in one community is not true universally, and the only absolute truths are the ones the Mexican government puts to paper … until they edit that document. Join us for the most confounding episode yet of Agave Road Trip!

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Heads, Hearts, and Tails: Where You Cut Matters

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:02:00 +0000

Most people think that when you distill a spirit, what comes out of that still goes directly into the bottle. But, in fact, different distillers make different decisions about which parts of the distillation they keep and which parts they leave out — and those decisions have a profound effect on the finished flavor. That’s what we talk about in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

Photo Courtesy of Michael Sager

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How to Drive in Mexico Without Getting Killed - S2E11

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 19 Nov 2020 11:00:00 +0000

I tell a lot of stories about driving through Mexico — about the dried-up riverbeds that serve as roads to rural communities, about the car rental agencies that sometimes need to be threatened before they get you your car, about the expansive beauty of the Sierra Madres. But perhaps the strongest reactions I get are to tales of driving through blockades — roadblocks set up by protestors to intentionally create traffic problems as a way of making a political statement. That’s what we cover in this week’s episode of Agave Road Trip!

Photo Courtesy of Alvin Schultz

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The Difference Between Tequila and Mezcal - S2E10

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 12 Nov 2020 19:34:39 +0000

What’s the difference between tequila and mezcal? Is all tequila really mezcal? Is all mezcal made by hand? These and other questions are answered in this episode of Agave Road Trip! Agave Road Trip helps gringo bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. Your hosts are Lou Bank and Chava Periban.

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Mercado Day in Mexico - S2E9

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 5 Nov 2020 21:36:37 +0000

All of the fruits and spices and flowers and herbs and meats and magic of Mexico show up in the mercados -- the markets. So you should show up there, too! What should you look for? What can you bring back? And what exactly is a clown market? All this and more in this episode of Agave Road Trip!

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How Much Can I Bring Back? - S2E8

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 16:30:02 +0000

You’re headed to Mexico! Excited to drink agave spirits in their natural habitat! More excited to bring spirits home to share with friends! So … how much are you allowed to bring back?

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How to Drink Spirits Neat - S2E7

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 22 Oct 2020 21:13:47 +0000

The margarita is almost certainly Mexico’s greatest ambassador. But how do you move from drinking cocktails to drinking neat spirits? We suggest one specific journey in this episode of Agave Road Trip.

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15 Days to Distill - S2E6

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 15 Oct 2020 16:38:24 +0000

Many men and women in rural Mexico started learning to make agave spirits when they were 10 or 11 years old, from their parents. Then some learned in two weeks from a bunch of university students who randomly showed up in town.

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What’s Heritage, Anyway? - S2E5

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 8 Oct 2020 12:31:56 +0000

The traditional methods of making agave spirits in Yutanduchi de Guerrero, in Oaxaca’s Mixteca region, go back to … the late 1990s? So what does “heritage” mean, in this case?

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No Tequila is Mezcal - S2E4

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 1 Oct 2020 19:11:13 +0000

Maybe someone told you that all tequila is mezcal but not all mezcal is tequila. Hell, maybe you read it in the New York Times, USAToday, the Daily Mail, or the Chicago Tribune, or on VinePair, Thrillist, Chowhound, or Science 2.0. They’re all wrong.

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Gringo Guero - S2E3

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 22:42:40 +0000

Some folks are wondering what we mean when we say “gringo.” Here’s the deal….

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The Arnold Palmer of Pulque - S2E2

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 17 Sep 2020 14:50:43 +0000

Before there was mezcal, there was pulque: the undistilled, fermented sap of the uncooked agave. If you’ve never had it, you’ll want to go find it after listening to Chava and Lou talk with master pulquero Jose Luis Dominguez Gonzalez. Or, at least, you’ll be amused by how he dismisses Lou’s choice of the Arnold Palmer of pulques.

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What's in My Tequila? - S2E1

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 14:45:12 +0000

Some tequila bottles say they're 100% blue agave. Others don't. So ... what exactly is in those bottles? Lou and Chava speak with David Suro of Siembra Azul Tequila about mixto tequilas: what they are and how they affect the tequila industry and the people whose lives are impacted by the industry.

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Perlas Before Swine - S1E9

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Thu, 6 Aug 2020 05:00:10 +0000

Dr. Roberto Zenit is a highly regarded professor at Brown University. Nonetheless, he speaks with us about his recently released study of las perlas, the process by which maestro mezcaleros use the bubbles in their agave spirits to measure the alcohol content and quality of the spirits.

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Hasta Pronto! - S1E8

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Wed, 17 Jun 2020 14:38:32 +0000

The season wrap includes Tecate I.V. drips, bartender super powers, and the value of time in rural Mexico.

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Oh, Wood You? - S1E7

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Wed, 17 Jun 2020 14:32:45 +0000

To age or not to age, that is the question. And Lou and Chava attempt to answer it, along with mezcalero Mariano Vazquez. They also talk the proper mass of a tortilla and drink the proper mass of Michoacan mezcals.

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Be Still My Heart - S1E6

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:27:58 +0000

This is where we separate the alcohol from the water – we talk about distillation with mezcalero Jesus Franco. And traditional ceramics. And Oaxaca tour guides. And not a single poop joke.

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Fantastic Fermentation - S1E5

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:13:11 +0000

We give a nutshell explanation of how agave turns from sugar to alcohol and are joined on the occasion by mezcalero Amando Alvarado Alvarez. We also talk about how growing agave helped a middle school in rural Oaxaca reduce violence in their community.

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The Grind - S1E4

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:11:17 +0000

After you cook your agave, you’ve gotta mill it – make tiny, little pieces of those giant, cooked agaves. How do you do that? We explain it here and maestro mezcalero Eduardo Angeles joins. Then we talk about how to avoid explosive diarrhea while eating great street food in Mexico. And chocolate.

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Get Roasted - S1E3

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:09:57 +0000

That agave won’t just start fermenting, you know. You’ve gotta make it delicious for yeast before yeast makes it delicious for you. We talk with mezcalera Catalina Navarro Sanchez about how that’s done, then talk about how mezcalero Eduardo Angeles saved Santa Catarina Minas, Oaxaca, from drought.

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What is Agave? - S1E2

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 15:07:39 +0000

We give a nutshell explanation of how agave turns from sugar to alcohol and are joined on the occasion by maestro mezcalero Amando Alvarado Alvarez. We also talk about how growing agave helped a middle school in rural Oaxaca reduce violence in their community.

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Jump In! - S1E1

loubank@10ap.com (Ten Angry Pitbulls, Inc) — Tue, 9 Jun 2020 15:03:53 +0000

We introduce ourselves and the series, but mainly because we felt obligated to do it. We think it’s more fun to let that information reveal itself naturally. Though there is a nice bit about mind-blowing arroqueño and Santa Maria Sola de Vega.

Find extra photos and related links at agaveroadtrip.com

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