Friday thru Sunday, December 11 to 13, 2009, the town of Mascota is hosting the 2nd annual Mascota Raicilla Festival. The event will take place in the auditorium and halls of the Presidencia. It is sponsored by the City of Mascota, CONAFOR, the Mexican Council of Raicilla and the Regional Association of Foresters.
For those people who are not familiar with Raicilla, it is a locally produced version of mezcal, similar to other versions such as Tequila. It is distilled from an Agave plant different but closely related to the Blue Tequila Agave. The primary difference in production is that the Raicilla Agave piñas are baked in wood ovens instead of steamed, in preparation for fermentation.
Raicilla is considered a non-timber forest product because it is produced from Agave maximilliana, a plant that locally grows wild in the forest understory.
The festival will include an exhibition of raicilla and related products, talks about raicilla and its production techniques and about the people, the Agaves Mezcaleros en México who produce it.
There will also be an exhibition of Raicilla plants and a tour of local producers and plantations. Samples will be available and demonstrations of the traditions surrounding Raicilla drinking will be presented.
In the evenings there will be entertainment by local singers and Folkloric dance groups. On Saturday evening there will be a popular dance in the town square.
More information call 01 (388) 386 19 70 or email comconraicilla (at) hotmail.com.