National Tequila Day!

National Tequila Day is July 24th – a time for all Americans to celebrate tequila in all its forms, from the incredibly cheap rocket fuel that powers house parties when the keg runs dry to the complex spirits designed to be sipped and savored like a fine whiskey.

And why shouldn't it have its own day? Appreciation for what's considered North America's first native-born distilled spirit is at an all-time high. In fact, the Mexican liquor is the fastest growing distilled spirits category in the U.S.

It's no surprise. Tequila has been exported to the U.S. since the late 1800s, but only recently have the liquor-drinking masses have found much use for it beyond day-glo hued margaritas and mind-numbing benders. Now there are premium and super-premium tequilas as smooth and nuanced as any single-malt scotch that have been embraced by the American market, with the category growing by nearly 10 percent per year since 2002.

This tequila renaissance coincides rather nicely with Mexican regulations detailing the processes and ingredients that go into distilling tequila. To be officially known as tequila a spirit has to be made with blue agave in the Mexican state of Jalisco or in small designated areas of the states of Guanajuato, Michoacan, Nayarit and Tamaulipas. Higher end tequilas are made with 100 percent pure blue agave while cheaper brands, called mixtos, use less, rounding out the distillation with other varieties and sweeteners like sugar.

All tequilas, however, must be made with a minimum of 51 percent blue agave in order to be called tequila at all. In addition, true tequila must not only be distilled but also bottled in Mexico. While many distilleries already followed these rules, codifying them into law reassured the marketplace that it was getting a quality product, and spurred huge sales growth and a rise in appreciation for the liquor.

Of course, many have never had the chance to try a premium tequila. Rather than the harsh burn and smoky spice most of us remember from our college days, well-made tequilas are smooth, with deep herbal, almost vegetal flavors. When aged in oak barrels, as in reposado and anejo tequilas, which must be at least two months and one year old respectively, tequila takes on whiskey-like qualities as well – making for an incredibly layered character, often featuring vanilla and caramel notes similar to a quality bourbon. Obviously, those kinds don't belong in margaritas.

Mexican law enforcement on Thursday crossed into Arizona by helicopter and fired two shots at U.S. border agents

A Mexican law enforcement chopper crossed about 100 yards north into the Arizona desert, the U.S. Border Patrol said in a statement. The helicopter then fired two shots on the Tohono O'Odham Indian Nation, which sits on the border. Border patrol union leaders say the Mexicans fired at agents but that none of them were hurt.

However, Mexican authorities have denied shooting at agents and say they were under attack during a mission to find smugglers on the border.

Tomás Zerón, the director of the Mexican attorney general's office investigative office, said that Mexican military and federal police who were conducting an operation on a ranch in Altar, Sonora, were shot at by criminals. Mexican authorities never fired any weapons and in fact never crossed into the U.S. side of the border, he said.

Art del Cueto, president of the local border patrol union, said four agents were in a marked patrol vehicle when they were shot at.

"They could say they didn't fire at the agents intentionally. But for them to say that they were no shots fired within the United States, toward the United States Border Patrol, is a lie. They got in contact with our managers and apologized for the incident," del Cueto said.

The Mexican helicopter was 15 yards from the border agents when they were came under fire, Del Cueto said. He's also concerned that Tucson sector officials didn't notify the next shift of border agents that there had been a shooting, he said.

"... I think our managers within the area should have definitely informed the oncoming shift this had happened. We're always on high alert, but I think it would raise a fear level for our agents," del Cueto said.

Sebastián Galván, a spokesman for the Mexican Consulate in Tucson, said the office was gathering information but did not have any details yet.

This incident was not the first one in which the Mexican military has veered across the international boundary.

In January, U.S. border agents confronted two heavily armed Mexican soldiers who crossed 50 yards inside Arizona, the Los Angeles Times reported. A standoff ensued, but nobody was hurt.

In 2011, more than 30 uniformed Mexican soldiers in military vehicles crossed the Rio Grande without authorization in an incident that was believed to be inadvertent.

SPOTLIGHT: Lupita Amondi Nyong'o

Lupita Amondi Nyong'o (born 1 March 1983) is a Mexican actress, Of Kenyan descent film director, and music video director. She made her American film debut in Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave (2013) as Patsey, for which she received critical acclaim. For her role Nyong'o won the Screen Actors Guild and Critics' Choice Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and was nominated for the Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.