The Secret Life of Spirits, Part 2: Savage Water, Tequila & Mezcal

O tequila, savage water of sorcery, what confusion and mischief your sly, rebellious drops do generate!” In 1980 Tom Robbins poetically captured the personality of tequila as a disruptor in his novel Still Life with Woodpecker, but he might also have been predicting tequila’s disruption of the American liquor market. According to the Distilled Spirits Council of the US, tequila and mezcal are poised to upset vodka as the best-selling liquor in the United States this year. So what is the difference between tequila and mezcal? What gives them their distinct flavors? Join Notre Dame chemistry professor Ken Kuno and Ron C. Runnebaum ‘96, associate professor in the Department of Viticulture and Enology at the Robert Mondavi Institute of Wine and Food Science at UC Davis, as they uncover the chemical mysteries behind tequila, mezcal, and other agave-based spirits.

Speakers:

• Ken Kuno,  professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and concurrent professor of Physics, University of Notre Dame
• Ron C. Runnebaum, ’96, associate professor, Department of Viticulture and Enology, Robert Mondavi Institute of Wine and Food Science, UC Davis

Thanks for listening! The ThinkND Podcast is brought to you by ThinkND, the University of Notre Dame's online learning community. We connect you with videos, podcasts, articles, courses, and other resources to inspire minds and spark conversations on topics that matter to you — everything from faith and politics, to science, technology, and your career.

• Learn more about ThinkND and register for upcoming live events at think.nd.edu.
• Join our LinkedIn community for updates, episode clips, and more.