Podcast
Agave Road Trip
Hosted by Heritage Radio Network · EN
Agave Road Trip provides gringo bartenders with firsthand knowledge about heritage agave spirits from Mexico, including mezcal, raicilla, bacanora, and destilado de agave.
19episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The difference between a good agave and a bad one
1w ago00:27:05Tap to summarizeHow often have you heard or read that a brand of Tequila or Mezcal is only using quality agaves? That makes me wonder about those poor, down-market agaves. They deserve love, too, don’t they? And what makes them different from the good agaves? Brix? Years? Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Raicillero Fausto Romero of El Acabo Raicilla and Raicilla Asil.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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The tumbado way to harvest maguey (Paulo Rodriguez remix)
2w ago00:23:46Tap to summarizeLast episode I talked with Linda Sullivan about the tumbado process of harvesting agave. This episode … also about tumbado, but with Paulo Rodriguez, the raicillero who brought the method back to Chacala, Jalisco! So, why two episodes about the same thing? I was maybe a bit under the influence when I recorded the episode with Paulo, forgot we’d recorded it, got home, and recorded last week’s episode with Linda. It’s a Deja Lou episode of Agave Road Trip! Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Raicillero Paulo Rodriguez, interpreted by Greg Rutkowski, and Raicillero Omar Alejandro Cruz Ortega, interpreted by Roy Sierra.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Harvesting maguey the “tumbado” way (Linda Sullivan remix)
3w ago00:29:09Tap to summarizeI was listening to Tim McKirdy’s podcast “Mezcal’s Untold Past, Soaring Present, and Fragile Future,” and he talks about an agave harvesting process called tumbado, where you disconnect the plant from its roots and let it sit there in the field. It was said to be an old practice that had been lost. Even in the podcast, he said he only heard about this from one guy, so I thought, yeah, probably not really a thing. And then I met Paulo Rodriguez in Chacala, Jalisco.Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivan of seynasecreto and wisdom from Raicillero Paulo Rodriguez, interpreted by Greg Rutkowski.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Spirits vs beer vs wine: Last alcohol standing
Apr 3000:34:57Tap to summarizeThere’s a graph in the latest report from the Distilled Spirits Council of the US that shows that for the first time in recent history, we’re drinking more spirits than we are either beer or wine. What does this mean, exactly? Or does it mean anything? And why is it that everyone I know will drink wine but wine is, and always has been, the runt of this litter?Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Marissa Paragano of The Tequiladies with numeric wisdom provided by DISCUS.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Bird poop in the fermenters
Apr 2300:26:20Tap to summarizeI was talking with a brand owner about the process used to make his Tequila, and when he described his fermenters, I asked if they were indoors or outdoors. I hadn’t realized the regulations required them to be indoors – or, anyway, he said they did, though I found nothing in the NOM to corroborate that. But … he said they did because when you go around to these traditional vinatas, it was disgusting to see all the birds pooping in the fermenters. But … is it?Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivanof seynasecretoand wisdom from Xaime Niembro, owner Mezcal Gracias a Dios and Juan del Campo Whisky.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Making sense of the Filipino still
Apr 1600:28:54Tap to summarizeWhen people talk about stills in Mexico, you hear “Filipino” and “alambique” a lot … “Mongolian” a little. And it’s been suggested that the Filipino still was the first to arrive the Americas’ What makes it Filipino? How did it get here? And what’s it got to do with coconuts? Food writer Nic Stevens joins me this week to talk about that plus vino de coco, vino de cana, and the origins of distillation in the Americas!Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest NC Stevens! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Making (non)sense of 2025 spirits sales
Apr 900:38:57Tap to summarizeFor the first time in a decade, we’re paying less per liter for Tequila/Mezcal, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the US. The most expensive cordials are growing in sales faster than anything. We’re not drinking less, we’re drinking differently. And those are just three of the insights we gain from the latest DISCUS annual report! If numbers are your thing, this is your episode of Agave Road Trip!Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Marissa Paragano of The Tequiladies with numeric wisdom provided by DISCUS.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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When 130 Tequilas are additive-free, does that matter anymore?
Apr 200:32:05Tap to summarizeIn a recent issue of The Tequila Report, more than 130 Tequila brands identify as additive-free. So how do those brands distinguish from one another? What else matters to discerning consumers? Tequila Report pubisher Jay Baer and I try to figure that out in this episode of Agave Road Trip!Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Jay Baer of The Tequila Report.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Those Mezcal stories in the AP News
Mar 2600:40:48Tap to summarizeEarlier this month, journalist Claudia Rosel released three Mezcal stories via the AP. Some of the agave nerds derided the stories as “at least 5 years late.” But I’d suggest they didn’t understand the stories. Or maybethey don’t understand the lifecycle of agave? Or … maybe they don’t understand the average consumer? Whatever the case, I welcome Claudia to this episode of Agave Road Trip!Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Claudia Rosel.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Does transparency ruin the mystery of Mezcal?
Mar 1900:21:22Tap to summarizeIn the December 2025 episode of his amazing podcast “The Curious Bartender,” Tristan Stephenson asks Foursquare Rum CEO and Master Distiller Richard Seale, “How important is transparency in rum?” And Richard’s answer was not at all what I expected. Close the kimono and call in Linda — we talk about the beautiful mystery of Mezcal in this episode of Agave Road Trip!Agave Road Trip is a critically acclaimed, award-winning podcast that helps gringx bartenders better understand agave, agave spirits, and rural Mexico. This episode is hosted by Lou Bank with special guest Linda Sullivanof seynasecreto.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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