Spiked: A Celebration of Agave is full of fun programming, from live music to interactive games, a Yay or Nay Agave competition, a papel picado demo and crafting station, and, of course, the Sip, Sip, Hooray Agave and Chocolate Tasting for VIP ticket holders. But we anticipate one of the highlights being the agave pit roasting demonstration taking place throughout the day in the Amphitheater.
Steve Sanchez, a Lancaster-based farmer/rancher, will host the demonstration. Steve focuses on agave, cactus and goats on his farm and has been doing agricultural consulting around California. He’s also the host of the “Agave & Cactus Talk” podcast, which is available on Apple, YouTube and Spotify.
“I’m third generation agavero, which is an agave cultivator, starting with my grandpa,” Steve says. “I was born in Ahualulco de Mercado, Jalisco. It is a traditional tequila-producing region that has grown agave for centuries. My grandfather was a small agave farmer who focused on pulque, but he grew a polyculture too, or dozens of different shrubs, trees and agaves/cactus, including animals, which is what I modeled my farm off of.”
But Steve wasn’t always a fan of farming.
“I grew up in a farming family but I never liked farming until I studied at UC Santa Barbara and took some classes on sustainability where I was introduced to permaculture,” Steve says. “When I realized farming could heal the earth instead of harming it, I set out to start a farm that could be a positive for the environment and people.”
For the Spiked agave pit roasting demonstration, Steve will bring stones from his farm to show how a roasting pit is made and discuss the process of agave roasting. He will have some pre-roasted piñas and quotes (flower stalks) for the audience to taste. Steve says he experiments with agave roasting and can discuss some of the ways he sees the plant being utilized in the future including its potential use as biofuel. He will also have a variety of products on hand to show the wide usage of agave.
