Due to the storage in wooden barrels, the taste and appearance differ more than a typical Tequila. Depending on the length of storage, the terms Joven, Reposado and Añejo are used:
- Joven: Is a clear (white) mezcal that has only been stored for a short time (less than two months) or not at all.
- Reposado: Has a light yellow color and has been aged in wooden barrels for at least 60 days.
- Añejo: Is a golden yellow mezcal that has been stored for at least one year in wooden barrels with a maximum capacity of 350 liters.
Some Mezcal Tequila bottles contain special butterfly caterpillars, which have less to do with taste and more to do with product marketing.
Sotol
This spirit also comes from Mexico and is very similar to tequila, both in taste and in production. The national spirit of Mexico's largest city, Chihuahua, may only be produced there and in two other specified cities. One major difference from tequila production is that sotol is distilled from a wild plant called "dasylirien."
Sotol is classified in the same categorization as tequila: Blanca, Reposado and Añejo.