Agave americana pita, which are suitable for making rope, matting, or coarse cloth. They are also used for embroidery of leather in a technique known as "piteado". Both pulque and maguey fiber were important to the economy of pre-Columbian Mexico, where the fermented drink was known as "octli". In the tequila-producing regions of Mexico, agaves are called" mezcales". The high-alcohol product of fermented agave distillation is called "mezcal"; "A. americana" is one of several agaves used for distillation. A mezcal called "tequila" is produced from "Agave tequilana", commonly called "blue agave". The many different types of mezcal include some which may be
Arak (drink) 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. Arak is the traditional alcoholic beverage in Western Asia, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean, as well in Iran, Armenia and Lebanon. The word arak comes from Arabic "" , meaning 'perspiration'. Its pronunciation varies depending on local varieties of Arabic: