Best Del Maguey Mezcal

Del Maguey Vida San Luis Del Rio Mezcal is the perfect place to start when you want to try mezcal. This Mexican liquor is a little harder to find than tequila and other options, but Del Maguey has made its Vida Mezcal easy to get and at an entry-level price. It tastes delicious in mixed drinks and will introduce you to the world of mezcal. This mezcal is distilled twice and hand-crafted. Del Maguey uses wood-fired copper stills, which bring out fruity aromas and other sweet notes such as honey and vanilla. On your palate, experience cinnamon, banana, tangerine and even sandalwood. Wondering why you should opt for mezcal over tequila? Both mezcal and tequila are Mexican liquors distilled from the agave plant. Mezcal and tequila come from different regions in Mexico and often from different varieties of agave plant. Tequila must come from the Blue Agave plant, while mezcal can come from any agave plant. Most mezcal comes from Agave Espadin, including the Del Maguey Vida variety. Though you can try sipping Del Maguey Vida Mezcal to understand what mezcal is and how it should taste, this mezcal is designed to taste delicious in cocktails. The fruit notes and long finish make it perfect for fruitier mixes, such as a Sierra Madre Sunrise, which is made of mezcal plus Aperol, chocolate bitters and lemon juice. Try making a Mezcal Julep with basil and cranberry for a fruity twist on the classic. Remember to use quality juices and ripe fruits for best results. Buy Del Maguey Vida Mezcal online through Drizly and have it delivered directly to your door or pick it up in store.

This low-valley mezcal shows elements of roast agave, green agave, lime rind, gentle smoke, and rainwater. It is unbelievably soft on the palate, yet registers 92 proof. This mezcal is deserving of every accolade it receives. (Note: may not come with packaging as pictured).

Santo Domingo Albarradas Albarradas has a high light nose with lots of citrus overtones. A bit of roasted pear too. Lots of tropical fruit on the tongue, spicy and woody with a clean dry finish. Santo Domingo Albarradas is located in the Mixe (pronounced Mee-Hay) region south of Oaxaca. The Mixe is a high altitude tropical zone closely resembling parts of Hawaii. Tropical plants and fruits grow here beside rushing mountain streams. Cool gray mists blow through the valleys and pine trees also grow nearby. The water here is spectacular! Espiridion Morales Luis and his son Juan are our Palenqueros. Espiridion has been making Mezcal since the Fifties. He is soft spoken and sincere which reflects in the honesty of his mezcal. ©2020 Del Maguey. All Rights Reserved.

Crema de Mezcal, is a combination of Miel de Maguey (unfermented syrup of the roast agave) and Mezcal San Luis del Rio – double distilled from 100% mature agave Espadin, produced the original, natural 400-year-old, hand-crafted way. Crema de Mezcal has a nose of roast maguey, with vanilla and pear, a creamy almond, apple, coffee, pineapple pallate and a long sweet smoky orange finish. As the Five day maguey roast is uncovered, the Miel of a few of the sweetest magueys are pressed out. Ten percent Miel de Maguey is added to ninety percent San Luis del Rio resulting in an 80 proof Crema de Mezcal. We have created, in Crema, a totally original and natural, single village produced libation.Sip this delicious beverage before, during and after meals. Make a great margarita with nothing other than fresh lime juice. Drizzle it over any fruit or pastry for desert. ©2020 Del Maguey. All Rights Reserved.

This special edition from our Vino De Mezcal series is made from semi-wild maguey Barril and is dedicated to the remarkable talent of Florencio, “Don Lencho” Laureano Carlos Sarmiento, our eighty-year old master palenquero. Barril are the biggest, fattest of the Tobasiche, Madrecuishe, Cirial, Larga family. The magueys were roasted in a conical pit over hot rocks, buried under a cap of earth for three days, fermented with nothing but airborne microbes for thirty days, then twice distilled very slowly in an ancient style clay still with bamboo tubing, the centuries-old Oaxacan organic, hand-crafted way. A spicy floral nose of carnation, tropical aromatics of gardenia and jasmine, ripe pear, dark fig, notes of wet green hay and forest floor. Enters the mouth like a caramel, and is round, soft and gentle, full-bodied, with a big middle palate. The long finish tastes of roasted root vegetables and umami, leaving the mouth with terracotta, a slate-like minerality and a touch of salinity.

The resulting artesanal mezcal has incredibly sweet fruit notes and a rich yet soft mid-palate, but it is also incredibly mineral-driven, remarkably complex, and has a very long finish. It is a cornucopia of tropical fruit, with the characteristic green herb, capsicum and dusty quality of Tobaziche, with an unmistakeable, crazy, zingy quality!

The Tobala maguey is found growing naturally only in the highest altitude canyons in the shade of oak trees like truffles. Tobala’s form is different than the maguey Espadin (sword) or maguey Azul (blue). It is smaller and broader leafed. It takes about eight piñas (agave hearts) to equal one piña from either of the more commonly propagated and cultivated Magueys. The pueblo is surrounded by a mountainous, tropical micro-climate. We keep our production limited, to not mess with nature and to continue with the traditional way… being very careful to never over harvest the Tobala and allow mother nature to do her job.

Del Maguey San Pablo Ameyaltepec is made from agave Tobala. It’s a very floral mezcal that has notes of spice, lilac and tropical fruit.

During the agave scarcity in Jalisco 2000-2004 Jalisco truckers came down to purchase Espadin from our most powerful Palenquero, Paciano Cruz Nolasco, in order to sustain tequila production. They brought with them baby Maguey Azul to plant in case there was another shortage. Seven years later this maguey Azul is very mature and has been earth-roasted, fermented with airborne microbes, twice distilled, unblended the original, centuries-old Oaxacan, hand-crafted way. In the original 900 bottle edition we had the rare opportunity to taste a crossing of the flavors of tequila Jalisco, and mezcal Oaxaca. Azul has a distinctively creamy mouth feel with bright citrus notes and dried tropical fruit (banana chip). A sweet green herbaceous, wet stone quality appears with a touch of white peppercorn and a medium long finish.

Climbing the rugged dirt roads high above San Dionisio Ocotepec, we discover the remote village of Las Milpas, a true example that “you don’t find Mezcal, Mezcal finds you.” Here, nestled among the cornfields overlooking rolling pastures, lies the palenque of Anastacio Cruz Antonio and his sons Rigoberto, Abel, and Pedro. Their Single Village expression is crafted by roasting ripe agave Espadin in an earthen horno carved into the granite hillside. Roasted agave is milled using a horse-drawn molino and fermented using only ambient microbes and yeasts in open-air wooden fermentation tanks and twice distilled in small copper stills. Las Milpas offers a nose of slate and minerals, balanced by tropical fruit and citrus notes, with rose petal florals, lavender, tarragon, and pea shoots, that evolves into a long and pleasantly dry finish.