Living in Arizona, people know that, for much of the year, water feels like the precious resource it is.
For thousands of years, flourishing agave plants have adapted to save every drop. It’s one of the many unique qualities that inspired writer and botanist Gary Nabhan to dedicate his life to protecting agaves and preaching about their invaluable benefits to humans.
After co-writing his latest book, ‘Agave Spirits: The Past, Present and Future of Mezcals,’ more national groups, like the James Beard Foundation, are recognizing both the species’ long history and its potential as a major crop.
But first, each agave starts as a seed. Nabhan tends to 55 different species in the carefully designed garden he has on his homestead in Patagonia.
“The plant will get as tall as you and me,” he said — you just have to give it time. Sometimes, Nabhan said, he’ll come here to just marvel at each plant’s unique shape. If he has guests over, he also has a roasting pit ready for cooking.
“If you meditate on (agaves), just reflect upon it, your blood pressure goes down, your stress levels go down,” he said. Nabhan’s fascination with agaves started when he was a child, and saw his grandfather distilling a drink from his native Lebanon.