I didn’t know I would be pairing fava beans with distilled mezcal last week, but I did. And it was under the auspices of the SETI Institute, the scientific organization dedicated to exploring and understanding the origin and nature of life in the universe. How wonderful that one can combine food, drink, and our relationship to the universe--all in one meal!

Alejandro AisMar, founder of Agavache and the collaborator of composer and SETI Artist in Residence Felipe Pérez Santiago (who is being hosted by the LAP through a partnership between the LAP and SETI) brought artisanal mezcal for the table along with a crash course on the cultivation and preparation of this unique and flavorful drink. The fava beans were supplied by a local farmer. Both mezcal and fava beans are very labor intensive. The long process of shelling fava beans begs for collaborators. The agave plant, out of which mezcal is made, can take four days to mash by hand with a mace (it’s mashed in a hollowed-out tree that looks like a canoe). Never mind the smoking, cooking and aging process. Making things from scratch takes time.