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
Agave any species known in the wild, although this may simply be due to the differences in growing conditions in Europe. Some commonly grown species include "Agave americana", "Agave angustifolia", "Agave tequilana", "Agave attenuata," "Agave parviflora", "Agave murpheyi", "Agave vilmoriniana", "Agave palmeri", "Agave parryi" and "Agave victoriae-reginae". One of the most familiar species is "Agave americana", a native of tropical America. Common names include century plant, "maguey" (in Mexico), or American aloe (not related to the genus "Aloe"). The name "century plant" refers to the long time the plant takes to flower. The number of years before flowering occurs depends on