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High on shots
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Moderate or otherwise, alcohol is bound to impair reflexes
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PHOTO: P.V. Sivakumar
Fun but risky Tequila shot tradition is popular among youngsters
“When life hands you lemons - break out the tequila and salt”.
Anonymous
The blue agave cactus is the source of tequila, a fierce Mexican drink. The heart of a decade-old agave weighs up to 90 kg, and the sap obtained from heating this “pineapple” yields a fiery wine when fermented.
Long before the Spanish arrived in the Americas, the natives of México were making octli, a wine from the agave cactus.
When their brandy casks ran dry, the Spanish Conquistadors distilled octli to make a new, potent beverage, the forerunner of modern tequila. For the Mexicans, the near universal method of drinking tequila shots– licking a pinch of salt, chasing it down with a shot of tequila, followed by a bite from a sour lime- is a crude insult to a sophisticated drink.
You would not abuse fine champagne that way, would you?
The “tequila shot” tradition probably arose during the influenza pandemic of 1918 (The Spanish Flu), when local doctors prescribed salt, lime and tequila as a medicine.
In the 1920s, prohibition in the United States made the cactus drink more popular as desperate Americans streamed into México looking for cheap alcohol.
Tequila is strong stuff, in the category of other hard liquors like rum, brandy, whiskey and vodka. Ted Demme, the American film producer and director once wryly said, “...my humble opinion is, I’m not quite sure where I stand on the legalisation of drugs - though, if tequila is legal, pot should probably be legal.”
100 ml contains 40 ml of alcohol (80 Proof) and 200 Calorie. Moderate drinking, defined as one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men, can decrease the risk of having heart disease or stroke.
A “drink”, in tequila terms, is 45 ml. Fatty food slows the absorption of alcohol from the gut, so do not skimp on the calories if there is to be serious drinking.
There are important caveats to this idea of “moderate” drinking. There is no blood level of alcohol at or below which it is safe to drive.
Having a single drink may be within the legal limit for driving, but it is still enough to impair reflexes and judgement. There is no “safe” level of alcohol consumption in pregnancy.
RAJIV. M
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