Unlike most of the rest of the state, its economy has been based on agriculture and livestock, rather than mining, and it is noted for its production of agave and mezcal.

[1] The municipality has mountains, small mesas, plain and rolling hills with an average altitude of 1,940 meters (6,360 ft) above sea level.

[1] The climate is between semi warm and temperate with an average annual precipitation of between 750 and 800 mm (30 and 31 in) with most rain falling in the summer, especially July.

Jesús González Ortega, a governor of Zacatecas and ally of Benito Juárez, lived in the town as a boy, then returned later in life to marry.

[1][2] Little is known of the early inhabitants of the area, but settlements probably go back as far as the first century of the Common Era, according to archeological evidence such as tombs.

At that pre-Hispanic ceremonial center the friar held a mass in honor of John the Baptist, who became the town’s patron saint.

During the colonial period into the 19th century, much of the agriculture was organized into haciendas, but these were dismantled with the Mexican Revolution and the Cristero War, when the town itself was nearly burnt to the ground.

[3] The municipality has seven registered distilleries making mezcal including El Caxcán, Don Aurelio Lamas and Zacatecano.

[2] In addition to the straight mezcal, cream variations in flavors such as strawberry, piña colada, coconut, nut and coffee are produced.

[1] The state and municipality have worked to develop a tourism industry for Teúl as well, including its naming as a Pueblo Mágico.

[2] Handcrafts include wooden masks, most often used for a traditional dance called Los Morenos in honor of the Holy Cross.