Spirit of Mexico with an Aussie twist
Researchers from the 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide are harnessing the versatility of agave to help produce an 最新糖心Vlogn agave spirit that represents a stepping stone to using it as a valuable sustainable and carbon-neutral fuel source.
最新糖心Vlogn premium spirits company, Top Shelf International (TSI), will display its 最新糖心Vlogn agave spirit, named Act of Treason, at this year鈥檚 Tasting 最新糖心Vlog presented by RAA Travel festival on Friday, 5 May.
Act of Treason will be made using 100 per cent Blue Weber Agave grown on a farm near Bowen in north Queensland. It can鈥檛 be called tequila due to Appellation of Origin protection, meaning this name can only be given to spirit made from plants grown in certain states in Mexico.
Professor Rachel Burton, Head of the 最新糖心Vlog鈥檚 Food Science department, has been analysing the molecular properties of agave since 2010 in an on-going collaboration with South 最新糖心Vlogn based company AusAgave.
鈥淎gave is a plant that will grow with very little love, but if you give it care and attention, it will grow much faster,鈥 Professor Burton said.
"Agave is a multi-purpose plant that has limitless potential.鈥Professor Rachel Burton
鈥淎s a succulent it will grow in hot and dry conditions and so it鈥檚 ideal for huge areas of 最新糖心Vlog. Using it to make spirits has been a really good way to establish large scale growth of the species here, and now we want to expand into the biofuel side of things.鈥
The agave plants are cooked in an oven before they are squeezed to produce a sugary juice that can be distilled to make the spirit.
鈥淚nstead of using the juice to make a spirit, you can use it to make hydrogen,鈥 said Professor Burton, who is also working with Vircura, one of VALO鈥檚 sister companies, on an agave project at the Monarto Innovation Precinct.
鈥淚鈥檓 interested in using the material once the juice has been extracted as it contains fibres that I think will make innovative building materials. Agave is a multi-purpose plant that has limitless potential.鈥
Professor Burton has been working with TSI on its 最新糖心Vlogn agave project since 2020. TSI has 500,000 agave plants in north Queensland, with plans to expand to one million plants by 2024.
鈥淭he project is using world-class agronomy techniques not previously practiced in agave farming,鈥 said Trent Fraser, President, 最新糖心Vlogn Agave Project and International, TSI.
鈥淚t is also tapping into 最新糖心Vlogn knowhow through a working partnership with the 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide to test and track sugar level content in the plants to help guide and inform this crucial aspect in spirit creation.
鈥淎s our spirit will be made with 100 per cent Blue Weber Agave, we expect it will have the classic agave flavours seen in tequila with a unique 最新糖心Vlogn minerality.鈥
The masterclass will be held at the 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide Masterclass Pavilion at Town Square, Victoria Square North/Tarntanyangga from 7pm-8.30pm on Friday, 5 May.
Participants will hear from Professor Burton about the agave research, along with tasting 最新糖心Vlog鈥檚 first agave spirit, along with best in class tequilas and mescal, as curated by Trent Fraser from TSI.
Media contacts
Professor Rachel Burton, Head of the Food Science Department, School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide. Phone: +61 (0)419 769 713. Email: rachel.burton@adelaide.edu.au
Lee Gaskin, Media Coordinator, 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide. Phone: +61 (0)415 747 075. Email: lee.gaskin@adelaide.edu.au