Jose Cuervo nearby regions in central Mexico. All Jose Cuervo tequila continues to be made in the town of Tequila in the state of Jalisco in Mexico. The blue agave plant has spiked leaves and a round, fleshy core (the piña). The leaves are chopped off and the core is cooked and crushed to create juice, which is fermented and distilled to make tequila. The resulting unaged, clear tequila is then diluted with water to bring the alcohol content down to around 40%. Pure tequila is distilled 100% from the sap of the blue agave plant, while mixto tequilas only need to
Arak (drink) Another distillation takes place, usually on the lowest possible temperature. For a quality arak, the finished spirit is aged in clay amphoras to allow the angel's share to evaporate and thus the remaining liquid is the most suitable for consumption. Arak (drink) Arak or araq is a West Asian distilled spirit (~40–63% alc/vol or ~80–126 proof) in the anise drinks family. It is a translucent white unsweetened anise-flavored drink, which is traditionally made of only two ingredients, grapes and aniseed. Aniseeds are the seeds of the anise plant, and when crushed, their oil provides Arak with a slight licorice taste.