Mezcal is the Mexican spirit distilled from cooked agave hearts, called piñas, and it is often recognized for a smoky flavor. The smoke usually comes from roasting the piñas in underground or earthen pit ovens before fermentation and distillation.
Unlike tequila, which must be made from blue agave, mezcal can be produced from many agave species. More than 30 species, varieties, and subvarieties are used, with espadín among the most common. Oaxaca produces the majority of Mexico’s mezcal, although legally recognized mezcal-making regions extend beyond that state.
The word mezcal comes from the Nahuatl mexcalli, meaning “baked agave.” Indigenous peoples had long fermented agave drinks such as pulque, while distillation arrived during the colonial period. Mezcal therefore reflects both older local agave traditions and later distilling technology.
Tequila is the main mix-up: it is technically a type of agave spirit, but its production is restricted primarily to blue agave and a defined denomination-of-origin area. Raicilla and bacanora are also regional agave spirits, yet the broad answer to this question is mezcal.