Tequila is a strong, transparent, alcoholic drink that is considered to be Mexico's national drink. It is obtained from the plant called maguey that grows in and around the town of Tequila, in the state of Jalisco. Ancient people made alcoholic beverages using the maguey plant long before the Spaniards came to the New World. In order to refine the drink the Spaniards introduced the process of distillation.

It takes between 8 and 12 years for the maguey to mature. When it is ready to be harvested, the leaves and spikes of the maguey are stripped away, leaving only the heart , which looks like a pineapple.

The heart is roasted, pressed, and then shredded to extract the juice, to which sugar is added. The mixture is left to ferment for four days, and then it is distilled twice. Afterwards the tequila is aged in wooden casks and the final product is a clear liquid. Tequila is not distilled from pulque nor is it produced from any cactus

The language of tequila can be very confusing. To begin with Tequila is the name of the town where production originally began, and it is also the name of the volcano overlooking this town. Locals in the Tequila Region refer to the blue agave plant as "mezcal", and the fields where this plant is harvested are known as "mezcaleras". Many distillers call to the distilled liquor mezcal and is only called tequila when finally bottled. Before tequila became known as it is today, it was called "vino mezcal" or mezcal wine.

The official Mexican standard or NOM defines Tequila as the product of fermentation and distillation of the blue agave juices (mostos) obtained at the distillery from agave cores or piñas grown in the Tequila Region and allows for the addition of up to 49% sugars from sources other than the agave plant. However the NOM defines as Tequila 100% Agave as the one containing sugars exclusively from the blue agave plant and it must be bottled at the distillery. Alcohol content must be between to 35º and 55º Guy Lussac (70 to 110 Proof).