Tequila, like drinks such as Jose Cuervo, is not something that makes you more awake. It is something that makes you more relaxed and slow.
Some people get mixed up because they might feel more energetic or have a milder hangover after drinking tequila.
However, tequila is a strong alcohol made from a plant called blue agave and ethanol, which is the same stuff that makes you feel tipsy in other drinks. It messes with your brain’s receptors. People in the United States and Mexico really like tequila.
Alcohol slows down your brain and body, making it harder to see, think, remember, and move around. Some people like this feeling, but if you have it a lot, it is not good for your health.
What is Tequila
Tequila is a special kind of strong drink made from the juice of a plant called Weber blue agave. People really like it, especially in the United States and Mexico. You can drink it in different ways, like in a mixed drink called a margarita or just as a quick shot.
The special thing about tequila is that it can only be made in certain places in Mexico to be called real tequila.
The Weber blue agave plant is a part of the lily family. It looks a bit like an aloe vera plant but is much bigger and has sharp points on its leaves. After growing for about seven to ten years, the plant forms a big white bulb underground that looks like a pineapple, called a piña.
When it is time to make tequila, they take off the leaves and cut the piña into pieces. They cook these pieces slowly to turn the starch into sugar. After that, they crush them and take out the juice. Then, yeast is added to make it ferment, and the sugar is changed into alcohol.
Different Kinds of Tequila
Tequila comes in five types, depending on where the agave plant is grown and how it is made.
- Blanco Tequila is clear and pure, without ageing.
- Gold Tequila is also clear but has some things added to it, like caramel.
- Reposado Tequila is aged for 2 months at least, often three to nine months, in wood casks.
- Añejo Tequila is older, aged from 18 months to 3 years in used bourbon barrels or oak barrels.
- Extra-Añejo Tequila is the newest type, aged for over three years in oak barrels, making it really old.
You might know about mezcal, which is a bit like tequila’s relative. It is made from the same agave plant. Tequila is a type of mezcal, but not all mezcals are tequila. It is a bit like how scotch and bourbon are both kinds of whiskey. The main difference is how they prepare the agave plant. Mezcal uses special holes in the ground.
Tequila Basics
Tequila is a kind of alcohol that people use in drinks like margaritas and tequila sunrise. It can be clear or have some colour, which is called Blanco. If it is clear, it might give you a milder hangover because it does not have certain substances that make hangovers worse.
To make tequila, they do a special process to make it strong, like they do with other kinds of alcohol. They let the liquid ferment. Since tequila is strong like this, it does not have gluten, so it is safe for people who cannot have gluten.
The Risks of Drinking Tequila
When you take a shot of tequila or have a glass of wine, it can be harmful not just for you but for others too. If you drink a lot of tequila or other alcohol, you might feel sleepy, and it can cause problems like:
- Acting without thinking which can lead to things like having sex with people you do not know, getting pregnant when you do not plan to, or getting infections like STDs.
- Getting really sick from too much alcohol.
- Accidents like falling, car crashes, or drowning.
- Changes in your blood pressure.
- Trouble with your stomach and digestion.
- High levels of sugar in your blood.
Having too much alcohol or doing risky things like drinking a lot can make you have lots of health problems.
Tequila & The Standard Drink
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) tells us that a regular drink has about 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is equal to .6 fluid ounces.
The NIAAA also suggests this:
- Men should not have more than 4 alcoholic drinks in one day.
- Women should not have more than 3 alcoholic drinks in a day.
- Men should not have more than 14 drinks in a week.
- Women should not have more than 7 drinks in a week.
Since there are many types of alcohol, like beer, wine, and strong drinks, what counts as a regular drink can be different. However, for tequila, a regular drink is a shot that’s 1.5 fluid ounces and has about 40% alcohol in it.
Why Tequila is a Depressant
Even if you have seen people drinking tequila and acting wild, it is still a calming drink. That is because it is a type of alcohol called ethanol, which is the same stuff that makes you feel tipsy in wine, beer, and other drinks. The alcohol is the same in all these drinks.
Some might think that tequila makes people act differently than when they have beer or wine, but that is not true. The alcohol in all of them affects the brain in the same way. However, the way you drink them can make a big difference in how you act. For example, people often take tequila in quick shots one after the other, while wine is usually sipped slowly over time to relax.
Tequila vs. Vodka
Vodka is a clear and strong drink that comes from Russia and Poland but is really popular in the U.S. It used to be made from potatoes, but now it is usually made from grains like wheat or rye. Some vodka can even be made from things like corn, rice, fruit, or sugar.
To make vodka, they mix the grains with yeast to turn them into a liquid with about 16% alcohol. That is not strong enough, so they distil it to make it 40% alcohol.
Tequila and vodka are different:
- Tequila comes from a plant called blue agave, but vodka comes from plants with lots of starch or sugar.
- Tequila has five types, while vodka has only one.
- Tequila has different flavours, but vodka does not.
- People in the U.S. like vodka more than tequila.
- Tequila is usually more expensive than vodka.
Conclusion
Having too much alcohol, like tequila, is not good for your health. Even if you drink a lot once in a while, it can be bad. Alcohol can damage your stomach and make your nerves upset. It can also mess with your blood sugar and make it more likely to get certain types of cancer.
Drinking too much can make you addicted to alcohol, which can be really bad for you and the people you care about.
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