"Tequila Worm" Myth
It is a misconception that some tequilas contain a "worm" in the bottle. Only certain mezcals, usually from the state of Oaxaca, are ever sold "con gusano" ("with worm"), and that only began as a marketing gimmick in the 1940s. The worm is actually the larval form of the moth Hypopta agavis, which lives on the agave plant. Finding one in the plant during processing indicates an infestation and, correspondingly, a lower-quality product. However, this misconception continues, despite effort and marketing to represent tequila as a premium liquor – similar to the way Cognac is viewed in relation to other brandies.
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Famous quotes containing the words worm and/or myth:
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The slug’s a living calendar of days;
What shall it tell me if a timeless insect
Says the world wears away?”
—Dylan Thomas (1914–1953)
“One of the oddest features of western Christianized culture is its ready acceptance of the myth of the stable family and the happy marriage. We have been taught to accept the myth not as an heroic ideal, something good, brave, and nearly impossible to fulfil, but as the very fibre of normal life. Given most families and most marriages, the belief seems admirable but foolhardy.”
—Jonathan Raban (b. 1942)