¡Tequila!: Distilling the Spirit of Mexico

223 Pages·2014·1.58 MB·English

by  Marie Gaytán

¡TEQUILA!

¡T E Q U I L A !
DISTILLING THE SPIRIT OF MEXICO
M A R I E S A R I TA G A Y TÁ N
Stanford University Press
Stanford, California
Stanford University Press
Stanford, California
© 2014 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic
or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system without the prior written permission of Stanford University Press.
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gaytán, Marie Sarita, author.
¡Tequila! : distilling the spirit of Mexico / Marie Sarita Gaytán.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8047-8807-6 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8047-9307-0 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Tequila—Mexico—History. 2. Alcoholic beverages—Mexico—History. 3. Drinking of
alcoholic beverages—Mexico—History. 4. National characteristics, Mexican. I. Title.
TP607.T46G39 2014
663'.50972—dc23
2014010117
ISBN 978-0-8047-9310-0 (electronic)
Typeset by Thompson Type in 10/14 Minion
CONTENTS
Illustrations vii
Introduction 1
1 Fermenting Struggles: Pulque, Mezcal, and Tequila 17
2 Intoxicating Icons: Pancho Villa, Masculinity,
and U.S.–Mexican Relations 43
3 Gendering Mexicanidad and Commercializing Consumption:
Tequila and the Comedia Ranchera 64
4 Touring Tequila and Harvesting Heritage:
The Past’s Enduring Presence 90
5 Pursuing Prestige: Regulation, Resistance,
and the Limits of Mexican Authenticity 113
6 Consuming Complexity: Tequila Talk in Mexico
and the United States 135
Coda 155
Acknowledgments 163
Notes 167
References 187
Index 205

ILLUSTR ATIONS
Map
1 The Tequila-Producing Regions of Jalisco, Mexico, 5
Figures
1 Field of blue agave in Tequila, Mexico, 4
2 The Discovery of Pulque by José Obregón, 1869, 24
3 Tequila label illustrating the modern production process, 41
4 Tequila bottle in the image of Pancho Villa, 44
5 Pancho Villa Tequila, 45
6 Editorial Cartoon from 1914: “How Long Will it Continue?”, 54
7 Editorial Cartoon from 1914: “A Substitute for Pulque,” 55
8 Cantinflas and Manuel Medel, Águila o sol (Heads or Tails) (1937), 70
9 Luis Aguilar and Jorge Negrete, Tal para cual (Tit for Tat) (1953), 71
10 Pedro Armendáriz, Juan Charrasqueado (Juan Charrasqueado)
(1948), 71
11–12 Calendar images, Jose Cuervo Tequila, 74–75
13 Sara García and Pedro Infante in Dicen que soy mujeriego (They Say
I’m a Womanizer), 1949, 79
14 Lucha Reyes, date unknown, 87
15 Jimador, Herradura Tequila, 101
16 Jimador working in an agave field, Amatitán, 102
17 Mayahuel, from the Fejérváry-Mayer Codex, 107
18 Mayahuel with jimador, Mundo Cuervo, 108
19 Billboard entering Tequila with the slogan “Tu Tierra Te Llama,
Vívela” (Your Land Is Calling You, Experience It), 115

¡TEQUILA!