Blue Agave is a spiky plant found in semi-arid places in the U.S. southwest and Mexico.  Liquor consisting of spirits of which at least 51% are derived from Blue Agave found in the Jalisco state and several neighboring states in Mexico, may bear the TEQUILA appellation of origin.  PRotection of the TEQUILA appellation is included in the NAFTA agreement.

J.B. Wagoner is a distiller located in Temecula, California and created an agave distillate that he initially branded as TEMEQUILA.

Now, the Mexican Tequila Regulatory Council has protested that TEMEQUILA is confusingly similar to TEQUILA.

LA Times coverage here.

Tequila Regulatory Council website here.

Background info including NAFTA links, on Tequila here.

Background on Wagoner entitled “American-Made Tequila Takes A Shot” (the kind of title that keeps native growers up at night).

I was unable to find an image of Pee Wee Herman doing the Tequila dance which would have gone here.