Blue agave field near Atotonilco, Jalisco, Mexico
© Brian Overcast/Alam
Blue agave
These fields of blue agave are the source material required to make genuine tequila. Blue agave is native to Jalisco, a coastal state of Mexico, where it grows head-high in the rich sandy soils of Jalisco’s highlands. Its flowers are pollinated, not by bees or birds, but by the Mexican long-nosed bat. The bat’s favourite food is the pollen and nectar of agave. Tequila is made by roasting the core of the plant and then crushing or squeezing it to release a sugary, clear liquid called aguamiel, which translates to honey water. That liquid is distilled to produce tequila. Authentic tequila, by law, can be made only in Jalisco and a few municipalities outside it, and its authenticity is protected by trade agreements.
Related Images
Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival, which begins today
Sunset at Counts Point in West MacDonnell Ranges, Northern Territory, Australia
The village of Aguerd Oudad and the larger town of Tafraout in Morocco
Circular agricultural fields in Morgan County, Colorado
Grapes on the vine in Mendoza, Argentina, for the National Grape Harvest Festival
Lake Dobson in Mount Field National Park of Tasmania
Shoreline near Tofino on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
Vinicunca Mountain in the Cusco Region of Peru
Bing Today Images
Field of blue agave near Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico
May 05, 2026
Sasso Caveoso, Basilicata, Matera, Italy
May 05, 2023
The Great Pyramid of Cholula, Puebla, Mexico
May 05, 2021
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
May 05, 2019
Torronsuo National Park in Finland
May 05, 2017
A Cape white-eye perched
May 05, 2016
