Before the barrel, before the bottle, before the first drop of tequila touches glass — there is the blade. The coa de jima, known simply as the coa, is more than just a harvesting tool.
It’s an extension of the jimador’s hand, slicing through thick agave leaves to reveal the precious pina — the heart of the plant and the soul of tequila.
The coa is a symbol of everything Point Blank Tequila stands for: heritage, hard-earned skill, and the deep connection between the land, labor, and legacy.
We honor the instrument that has shaped our spirit — a reminder that true tequila doesn’t come easy. It’s earned, swing by swing.
The Blade that Starts it All
The coa de jima is crafted not just for function, but for finesse.
A specialized blade with a long wooden handle and a sharp, semi-circular steel edge, its shape is no accident — curved to match the agave’s form and balanced for clean, controlled cuts with every swing.
In skilled hands, the coa moves with muscle memory, stripping away the sharp, fibrous pencas to reveal the piña: the dense, sugar-rich heart of the agave plant.
That moment — when the coa slices clean and the piña is exposed — is where the magic begins. Years of growth, all riding on a single swing of the blade. There’s no margin for error.
Overcut, and you lose precious sugars. Undercut, and you leave behind tough fibers that can distort the flavor. The coa ensures precision, allowing our jimadores — master agave harvesters — to work with surgical accuracy.
This level of care is essential to the integrity of the final spirit, impacting everything from fermentation to the smoothness of the pour.
There are no shortcuts here. No machines. No automation. Just generations of knowledge, steel sharpened by time, and hands that know exactly how deep to cut and when to stop. The coa does more than harvest agave — it protects its character.
At Point Blank Tequila, this is where the real work begins.
Still Sharp, Still Sacred.
No one knows for sure who invented the coa de jima. Its exact origin is unknown — lost to the hands of time and tradition — but its legacy lives on in the agave fields of western Mexico, specifically the highlands and lowlands of Jalisco, the cradle of tequila and the region where Point Blank is born.
Long before tequila was industrialized, agave was revered by Indigenous cultures as a life-giving plant — used in ceremonies, medicine, and offerings to the gods. The piña, or heart of the plant, was seen as a source of life and transformation. Cutting into it wasn’t just functional; it was deeply symbolic. The act of extraction carried spiritual meaning, often tied to seasonal cycles, land stewardship, and community ritual.
As centuries passed, agave growing shifted from a sacred practice to agricultural art. Jimadors needed a tool made for one purpose: to extract the heart of the plant with precision and respect. The coa was born out of that need — and remarkably, it’s changed very little since.
Over time, the coa transcended its role as a field tool. It became a symbol of the jimador’s craft — an icon of patience, strength, and generational knowledge. Passed from mentor to apprentice, from father to son, its form never needed redesign — a testament to perfect functionality born of tradition.
Today, though modern farming tools abound, the coa endures. At Point Blank Tequila, it connects us to our origins — linking centuries of heritage to the authenticity of every bottle we produce.
The Jimador’s Dance
Using the coa isn’t a task — it’s a rhythm, a ritual, a craft passed down through generations. Our jimadores are artisans of the field, their movements fluid and intentional. Each swing of the coa is a testament to years of expertise, each harvest an act of respect for the land.
Hour after hour, in the heat and dust, they work pina by pina — often harvesting hundreds in a single day with nothing but muscle, instinct, and steel.
Their mission? To ensure that each piña is harvested at the precise moment of peak maturity. Not too early. Never too late. That delicate timing ensures maximum sugar content, smooth fermentation, and a final flavor profile that’s unmistakably Point Blank: earthy, complex, and agave-forward.
It’s demanding, deliberate work — the kind some say should be automated. But we don’t believe in cutting corners.
Industrial machines can’t read a plant’s maturity. They can’t taste bitterness or spot imperfections. But our jimadores can — and they use the coa to cut precisely, avoiding the parts of the plant that can introduce harsh flavors or unwanted methanol.
By hand-harvesting with the coa, we preserve the integrity of each piña and protect the smooth, clean flavor for which our tequila is known.
The Coa: Steel, Skill, and Soul
Our tequila is born in soil enriched by heritage and cultivated with conscience. At our distillery, Destiladora Agave Azul, we harvest agave with care — honoring tradition from the moment it leaves the earth and giving back through sustainable methods that return composted waste to the fields.
The coa is the first touchpoint in that cycle — a tool that respects both the plant and the planet. Although it seems like a simple blade, it becomes so much more in the hands of a seasoned jimador: a union of steel, skill, and soul.
At Point Blank, we don’t just make tequila. We make a statement. The coa isn’t just part of our process — it’s part of our spirit.
