EVENT CALENDAR
April 18
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8-10am | Free
Help plant agave at Mission Garden! Learn more about this food’s ancient methods and future possibilities. Come plant agave in our Tomorrow’s Garden, in the style of traditional Hohokam-era agave plantings on nearby Tumamoc Hill. These agave will feed bat pollinators in the garden, then might just be roasted in our pit at a future festival. At the end of the planting, Archaeologist Allen Denoyer will demonstrate the use of a replica agave knife, used for cutting leaves off agaves in preparation for roasting.
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11:00am-2:30pm | FREE
A morning of important discourse around the past, present and future of culture, conservation, and knowledge for an equitable and prosperous path forward.
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2-4pm | $40
A perennial favorite of festival attendees, the Mexican Fermented Beverage Workshop is a delicious and informative exploration of an often overlooked part of the gastronomic patrimony of Mexico. Exploring fermentations allows us to consider connections between people and place in fresh ways. The “unseen” contributors to ecosystems, in this case microbes like yeast and bacteria, form a fundamental part of foodscapes and diets. An accompanying political and economic dimension of the people-plant-microbe nexus concerns the defense of land and natural patrimony.
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3 pm - 4 pm | $40 | 21+
Join Zinacantan Co-Founder Diana Pinzon and Raíces Imports to explore 5 expressions from this ecologically-focused mezcal project based in Southern Puebla. This will be the first time Zinacantan is ever hosting an event in Arizona! -
5:30 - 7pm | 21+
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT
Join Tap & Bottle North on Thursday, April 18 for an Agave Heritage Festival tasting event with La Gritona Tequila Reposado. La Gritona Reposado Tequila is distilled by Melly Barajas and her staff of women at her distillery in Valle De Guadalupe, Jalisco. We will be discussing women in the Tequila industry. Light bites will be provided to enhance your sipping experience.
The tasting will include 1 neat pour of La Gritona Reposado Tequila and two cocktails made with La Gritona Reposado Tequila. All ticket holders will get a complimentary 50ml bottle of La Gritona Reposado Tequila to take home with them. All bottles will be available for purchase after the event.
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5-11pm | $65
Agave rules the night with cocktails, mezcal and culinary delights! Kick off the night with a traditional mezcal toast at the Playground Bar & Lounge and then stroll to any of the over 12 participating Downtown Tucson restaurant and bar locations. Ticket includes veladora (traditional mezcal sipping glass), lanyard, mezcal toast with Mezcal, light bites & mezcal cocktail samples at all 10 locations.
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5:30-8pm | $130
Guests will be dining on regional Mexican cuisine from a multi-course menu served with curated agave spirits and cocktail pairings from a featured mezcal producer.
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7pm - 8pm | Free
The Hannelore Quander-Rattee Works-in-Translation Reading is an annual presentation in the University of Arizona Poetry Center’s Reading and Lecture Series. Established in 2014, this event features translators of poetry, international poets, and writers and scholars working with the boundless possibilities of translation. We're thrilled to present Natalia Toledo and Clare Sullivan in the 2023-24 readers in this series with an in-person reading. Livestream is also available.
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6-9pm | Free
Join Southern Arizona and the University of Arizona Community in celebrating the culture, history, and heritage of the noble agave plant as we dance, sip, talk, laugh, and engage for a night of celebration. The reception includes a presentation by Dr. Luis Coronado of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, performances by Som do Sial as well as the chance to meet many of the agave industry's best and most influential.
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8:30-10pm | 21+
Please join Bar Crisol as they host the closing reception for the University of Arizona Hannelore Quander-Rattee Works-in-Translation Reading featuring Natalia Toledo. Our friends from NETA and Ixcateco agave spirits will be on hand pouring a special menu of some of their incredible spirits from Oaxaca in celebration of Natalia’s reading. Produced in the Logoche and Nochixtlan areas of Oaxaca, each one of these wonderful brands is some of the premiere examples of mezcal from their respective regions. Guests who show a physical copy of the Poetry Center calendar get their first mezcal or flight for half-off.
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8:30-10pm | $35 | 21+
Join Mark SoRelle of PKGD GROUP Importers, Craft Agave Spirits and Isaiah Bruno of Sidecar for an evening of amazing agave spirits. Guests will enjoy three neat pours of G4 Blanco, G4 Reposado and Mezcal Palomo Espadin accompanied with lite bites and traditional mezcal accompaniments.
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$10-$15 | 21+
Stop by The Century Room and celebrate the opening night of the Agave Heritage Festival. Naim Amor & The Cocktail Hours plays a mix of exotica, tiki jazz, mambo & more; providing the perfect soundtrack to sip mezcal to.
LIMITED ADVANCED TICKETS AVAILABLE.
FREE GENERAL ADMISSION ENTRY TO AGAVE HERITAGE FESTIVAL LANYARD HOLDERS
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$5-$10 | 21+
Drink mezcal, connect with others and party late into the night at the Century Room! Tucson legend Salvador Duran brings his mix of bolero, cumbia & ranchero to the stage.
LIMITED ADVANCED TICKETS AVAILABLE.
FREE GENERAL ADMISSION ENTRY TO AGAVE HERITAGE FESTIVAL LANYARD HOLDERS
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April 19
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10am - 2pm | $660 | 21+
Takes place April 19 & 20. This course is designed for professionals and amateurs interested in developing their organoleptic analysis skills and gaining a deeper theoretical knowledge of the world of mezcal. Students are invited to awaken their olfactory abilities and become experts in everything there is to know about the Denomination of Origin Mezcal and its associated states.
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10am - 1pm | $10 | 21+
Raíces, or roots, ground us and connect us to places and each other. Roots are how plants, yes, including agave, nourish themselves, communicate with each other, and share resources. In that spirit. Please join us for this gathering of various stakeholders, academics, and mentors in the agave space as we work to form new connections and share ideas about moving forward and creating a more sustainable and fruitful future. This is an opportunity to learn from mentors, connect with peers, and inspire and energize attendees as we each chart our paths in the agave industry collaboratively and inclusively.
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12:30 pm - 1:30 pm | $15 | 21+
Join Tequila Ocho National Agave Spirits Specialist Chris Simmons as he guides guests on a very special tasting of old, pre-2020 Tequila Ocho vintages. During this tasting, guests will learn about the Tequila Ocho approach and the vision of Co-Founders Tomas Estes and Carlos Camarena when they launched this revolutionary brand. Vintages being poured will include 2010, 2013, 2015, and 2017. Guests will also be provided light bites.
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Join Mezcal Vago for a unique and philanthropic event featuring a captivating agave photo exhibit, a delightful Mezcal Vago tasting, and a silent auction, where all profits will be donated to a seed bank and agave landscape restoration project in Mexico.
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1pm - 5pm | $15 | 21+
Please join Tooleys and Agave Heritage festival as they host the Mujer Agave project from Oaxaca for the second year in a row.
Mujer Agave is a collective of women in the agave spirits industry where unity, legacy and joy are taught through diverse conferences and experiences. It’s geared toward empowering and connecting female stakeholders in the agave industry across disciplines. Based on the popularity of the 2023 event, it has expanded to an afternoon-long event with featuring a series of discussions with these icons of the mezcal industry. A tasting is included with this session.
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4pm - 5:30pm | Free
There are nearly 300 mescal agave species in the world, native to the Southwest United States and Mexico. The agave plant has been used by Native peoples for numerous utilitarian items. Mescal is served as a valuable food source still being harvested and prepared to this day by many Indigenous groups. For millennia people have pit roasted the heart of the plant, yielding a nutritious food staple rich in calcium and zinc. This talk includes the life history of mescal, and the multitude of Tribal uses of this intriguing plant and their long relationship with this plant, from centuries ago to the modern era.
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5 pm - 7 pm | $25 | 21+
For this guided tasting, agave spirits luminaries Salvador “Chava” Rosales Trejo of Tequila Cascahuín and Pedro Jimenez of Mezonte Agave Spirits and Tasting Room in Guadalajara will be leading guests through an exploration of a variety of agave spirits from the state of Jalisco. Attendees of this tasting will get to explore samples of Tequila Cascahuín, Siembra Valles Tequila, and Mezonte Agave Spirits with the brand owners themselves! Be sure to grab your ticket to this extraordinary tasting, as seats will sell out fast.
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6pm - 8pm | 21+
We loved this event so much from last year’s festival, we decided to run it back! The gang from James Beard Semifinalist bar Las Almas Rotas in Dallas, Texas comes back to the Festival to put their Texas spin on the Agave Heritage Festival! Serving a special menu of agave cocktails, ranch waters and neat pours and a special Texas BBQ-inspired food menu from JoJo’s, this honky tonk takeover will be a damn fine time and a celebration of borderlands culture!
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6pm - 9:30pm | $196 | 21+
Join the Maynards Culinary Collective and special guest chef Dr. Mae Hey for the epicurean experience of the year. Featuring a 6-course menu, mezcal neat pours, cocktails and in-depth remarks from brand experts on the history, culture, and craft around agave spirits. Guests will also receive a traditional tequila sipping glass.
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7 pm - 10 pm | $5 | 21+
This very special event is a screening of the documentary Guardianes del Espiritu, a brand new documentary about traditional mezcal production and its role in rural Mexican society. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker and subjects of the documentary, with a tasting to follow at Bar Crisol.
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7-10pm | $25-$30
Experience a historic night of both culture and entertainment with the Grammy Award-Winning Mariachi Flor de Toloache. Joined by Som do Sisal a 13-piece Brazilian Youth Orchestra that plays instruments made of repurposed Agave Sisal plants. This concert kicks off the Agave Heritage Festival Weekend in true Tucson style. As a special treat from the Agave Heritage Festival, the first 200 21+ concertgoers are treated to an agave spirit sample courtesy of Mezcal Union.
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9pm - 11pm | 21+
In Dog We Trust!!! Join our Nordic agave brothers and sisters as the bar fam from Barking Dog in Copenhagen, Denmark drop into the Old Pueblo for a one-night-only takeover of Tough Luck Club! Widely recognized as one of Scandinavia's best cocktail bars, the Dog team will be sharing their love of all things agave with a special menu of delicious cocktails, Ocho & Vago specials, and a curated playlist of their favorite tracks.
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$20-$30 | 21+
PLEASE NOTE THERE IS A 7PM SHOW & 9PM SHOW
Larry Redhouse returns to the Century Room for Agave Heritage weekend for the 3rd year in a row!
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$5-$10 | 21+
The fiesta continues! Join the Century Room for the Agave Heritage Festival afterparty featuring latin jazz musician Rafael Moreno!
LIMITED ADVANCED TICKETS AVAILABLE.
FREE GENERAL ADMSSION ENTRY TO AGAVE HERITAGE FESTIVAL LANYARD HOLDERS
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April 20
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8am-12pm | Free
Come experience an agave roast and learn about these plants’ many uses! Members of the Hualapai tribe will demonstrate their methods of roasting agave hearts, then share samples of this sweet, unique food. Talk to environmental and cultural organizations from around the region about agave’s unique uses, including how agave fiber can be used for ropes, shoes, and clothes. Experience a panel discussion about how agaves may make a comeback as a crop of the future.
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9am-4pm | All Ages
Come and experience an enchanting fusion of art, music, cuisine, libations, and culture with Tohono Chul and the Agave Heritage Festival. Embark on an afternoon journey where the captivating rhythms of Som do Sisal, the Brazilian Agave Orchestra, harmonize with the talents of Luis Loya from LaMata and Rion Toal from Cuish, showcasing the versatile nature of the agave plant as both a spirit and a repurposed musical instrument. Delight in a Mexican Folk Art exhibition or engage in informative discussions led by knowledgeable docents on the intricacies of agave and culinary traditions. Be sure to arrive early to fully immerse yourself in this vibrant celebration.
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10am - 12:30pm | $210 | 21+
Designed for amateurs and professionals alike, the Introductory Course is intended to open your window into the vast and diverse world of agave spirits. We’ll learn the basics of how to taste like a spirits sommelier, learning how to identify aromas, flavors, and overall quality. Over the course of 2.5 hours, we’ll explore six different agave spirits, each one with a unique history, production, and taste. You’ll leave this course with the tools to better appreciate agave spirits, and an urge to keep exploring these vast and diverse drinks.
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11am - 12pm | $35 | 21+
Guests will enjoy a pour of Montaraz Bacanora sample, Manchado bacanora cocktail plus a taco while they are educated on the place, plant and process of creating bacanora. During this class you will be painting a jicara, which is a dried out shell of a gourd, that is a traditional drinking vessel for mezcal in Mexico. Enjoy the ambiance of Tooleys Cafe as you learn more about the magical spirit from our Southern neighbors. The bar will be open for any additional purchases of pours or cocktails a la carte.
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12pm - 1pm | $50 | 21+
Join Westbound on Saturday, April 20 for an Agave Heritage Festival tasting event. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from Mexico's most renowned Mezcalera Berta Vasquez & Alex White, the director & designer of Rezpiral. As you sip three different unique mezcals you will learn how rezpiral works with producers and supports their craft and agricultural ways. Light bites will be provided to enhance your sipping experience.
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1:15-1:45pm | Free
Known as “The Tree of Wonders”, the agave has been celebrated in native cultures for centuries throughout the American Southwest and Mexico. That tradition continues today in Tucson’s Agave Heritage Festival. Narrated by local naturalist Dan Collins, The Amazing Agave presentation is an intriguing overview of “all things agave”.
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2pm - 3pm | $50 | 21+
Join Westbound on Saturday, April 20 for an Agave Heritage Festival tasting event. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from Mexico's most renowned Mezcalera Berta Vasquez & Alex White, the director & designer of Rezpiral. As you sip three different unique mezcals you will learn how rezpiral works with producers and supports their craft and agricultural ways. Light bites will be provided to enhance your sipping experience.
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2pm - 3:30pm | $40 | 21+
Mexico’s northern states are still not as squarely on the agave spirits map as, say, Oaxaca and Jalisco. Yet the borderlands area presents many distinct traditions and a wealth of mezcal diversity. Join Luis Loya of Lamata, Omhar Acuña of Los Cantiles 1905, and the Encinas family of Batuq to learn about the history, geography, botany, and current production of bacanora, palmilla, lechuguilla, and other distillates in the Mexican North. A tasting will accompany.
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7pm - 10pm | $65 | 21+
This annual signature event showcases all things agave with over 50 artisanal and ancestral mezcals and an agave cocktail showcase! Enjoy live music from Mamma Coal and AB Sanchez, delicious food, agave spirit tastings, agave art, and presentations from industry experts. Price includes 4 agave spirit tastes, 1 beer sample, 2 cocktail samples, and paired food from the Cup Café culinary team.
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8pm - 11pm | 21+
We are so excited (and a little flattered), to announce this late addition to our slate of incredible bar takeovers featuring friends around the world. James Beard Award semifinalists for Outstanding Bar, Bar Clavel, from Baltimore are headed back out to the 520 to share their beautiful, fresh spin on agave cocktails, hosting guests for one night only in the new basement bar beneath BATA restaurant.
Sharing destilados de agave, mezcal, and tequila from their vibrant dining room in the Remington neighborhood in Baltimore, Clavel has been a favorite bar of Festival Programming Director Francisco Terrazas and established itself as one of the preeminent mezcalerías in the country. Join us on Saturday, April 20th after the Agave Fiesta for a night of beautifully crafted cocktails and delicious mezcales.
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9pm - 11pm | 21+
Dina the Cumbia bus is pulling through Tucson for one night only, as Guadalajara bars Pare de Sufrir and De la O put on a fiesta of cumbia jams, chelas (beers), and mezcales.
Join Owls Club as they host this post-agave fiesta takeover featuring two of Guadalajara’s funniest bars. Cocktails will be done by De la O with Siembra Spirits ambassadors Misty Kalkofen and Dan Suro, and Pare de Sufrir house DJ, DJ Fukushima will be spinning Cumbia sounds for people to get down with a cold chela in one hand and a mezcalito in the other!
Pare de sufrir, tome mezcal!
Stop suffering, drink mezcal!
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4pm - 6pm | $30 | 21+
Join Batch Cafe & Bar for a Chocolate & Mezcal tasting with our friends at Rufina Mezcal and Embers Chocolate at Batch Tucson. This will be an intimate event with only 20 reserved seats available.
During this pairing, you'll have the opportunity to not only explore how these flavors can complement one another, but also how both agave and cacao can both yield very different flavors based on region, growing methods, and processing.
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$5-$10 | 21+
The fiesta continues! Join the Century Room for the Agave Heritage Festival afterparty featuring Naim Amor's Mambo Trio!.
LIMITED ADVANCED TICKETS AVAILABLE.
FREE GENERAL ADMISSION ENTRY TO AGAVE HERITAGE FESTIVAL LANYARD HOLDERS
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April 21
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5pm - 9pm | $220 | 21+
Honoring what is truly special and unique about our region and this festival, we are honored to present the Howard Scott Gentry Lifetime Achievement Award and Gala dinner. Considered the godfather of agave, this dinner celebrates the achievements of the industries best, brightest and most committed to the broader holistic aspect of this unique and noble plant.
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6pm - 9pm | $229 | 21+
Guests will be enchanted as they enter The Coronets' magical 160 year old property where they will be greeted with a signature cocktail, passed appetizers, and a warm welcome from Chef Fleming and Proprietor Sally. The main dinner takes place under the stars, where the guests will enjoy the mezcal neat to truly experience the supreme craftsmanship from the heart of Jalisco.
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6pm - 7:30pm | $40 | 21+
Sotol, derived from the Dasylirion genus (aka Desert Spoon), is not an agave spirit. But it neighbors agave spirits in its similar production methods. Sotol’s denomination of origin embraces three Mexican states–Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Durango–but the distillate occurs in other northern states, not least Sonora. It is sometimes called “the spirit of the desert.” In recent years, the rise of sotol in spirits markets has raised questions about its future sustainability. Join sotol activist Sandro Cánovas and Omhar Acuña of Los Cantiles 1905 for a tasting and discussion surrounding Sotol’s heritage and production.
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8pm - 9pm | $20 | 21+
Please join Crisol Bar as they host Hugo Gonzales of Maestros del Mezcal and Of Spine & Vine Imports as he conducts an exciting blind tasting of 5 Maestros del Mezcal expressions. Participants should have their pallets primed as there will be a competitive element to this tasting!
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$20-$30 | 21+
LIMITED ADVANCED TICKETS AVAILABLE.
FREE GENERAL ADMISSION ENTRY TO AGAVE HERITAGE FESTIVAL LANYARD HOLDERS
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$5-$20 | All Ages
GA Tickets - $5
GA Tickets + Tasting Tickets ( 4 Tastings 1/2oz pours)- $20
Join us for the Spirit of Sonora event, a community-focused celebration in coordination with Flowers & Bullets! Let's come together to shine a spotlight on the vibrant midtown farm and embrace the cross-cultural essence of the borderlands.
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THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!
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“For the last 14 years, the Tucson Agave Heritage Festival has put education at the forefront of this conversation and will continue to lead for years to come because education is key to the future of agave spirits. Keep up the amazing work!”
