Origen Raiz Cenizo is made in the state of Durango by a mezcalero who originally hails from Oaxaca. The ranch where this mezcal is made is at a high elevation and can receive frost during winter.
About this mezcal
Origen Raiz Cenizo is made with maguey Cenizo (Agave durangensis) by mezcalero Ignacio Grijalva Santiago, who is also known as Don Nacho. Though originally from Oaxaca, he moved to Durango with his family to run the palenque at Rancho El Ojo. Cosme Gabriel Simental also helps with the mezcal production. There are also some bottles made by mezcalero Noe Ramirez Varela. All of the bottles and batches we’ve seen have come from Rancho El Ojo, which is full of wild agave, sotol, and nopal plants. The ranch lies just outside the Sierra de Órganos National Park, at an elevation of approximately 6,350 feet. The agave used in this mezcal are smoked in underground ovens, crushed by mule-drawn tahona, fermented in open-air oak tanks, and double distilled in copper stills.
Origen Raiz del Espiritu Mezcal
Origen Raíz is a partnership between two distinct sets of Mexican roots. The Saravia family of Durango has a long history of working to improve the local economy through business, and the Cortés family of Oaxaca brings six generations of knowledge in mezcal production. The families were brought together by their sons, Asis Cortés and Bildo Saravia, through passion for their culture and respect for their heritage. Asis is well known for some of his other projects like Mezcal Dixeebe, and he was previously involved with his family’s other brands of Oaxacan-based mezcal: El Jolgorio, Nuestra Soledad, and Agave de Cortes. The family also operates a mezcaleria named Mezcalogia and Asis has a restaurant named Puro Burro in Oaxaca City.
Review this bottle
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Whiskey on a fence post
7 reviewsBatch 04CDIG0316 Edition 7 2016
Batch size 482 bottles
Really great, and unique mezcal. This is the first Durango I’ve had, and I was surprised at how much rich minerality it had. I see that they bury the pinas under volcanic rock while roasting, and the strong note of wet stone after a hot summer rain is likely a direct result of this. The smoke is strong and forward, but not a big mesquite note, just ash and smoke. There is a soft sweetness at the tip of the tongue, and then a lingering dry finish that reminds me a well executed sauvignon blanc.
Batch 04CDIG0316 Edition 7 2016
Batch size 482 bottles
Really great, and unique mezcal. This is the first Durango I’ve had, and I was surprised at how much rich minerality it had. I see that they bury the pinas under volcanic rock while roasting, and the strong note of wet stone after a hot summer rain is likely a direct result of this. The smoke is strong and forward, but not a big mesquite note, just ash and smoke. There is a soft sweetness at the tip of the tongue, and then a lingering
Nic Hnastchenko
108 reviewsUnique. Nice bite, and a little bit funky. Enjoyed this.
jgerdes
7 reviews2017 edition 3.
Bottle 183/711
Very different. Another reviewer mentioned the Islay of Mezcal. I would agree, not necessarily due to smokeyness (although it is there), but more the iodine/menthal/leather note. There is some sweetness here too.
GreenspointTexas
385 reviewsDifferent. A bubble gum mezcal, if you will. Not much smoke, but some fruit and some definite cheese/funk. Still not sure what score to give this. Everytime i sip, i get something different. Solid at the very least
thamthong
47 reviewsedition 4, batch 30CDI617, ‘17, bottle 273/721. islay mezcal. well, relative to the other stuff i’ve been drinking, this is pretty aggressively smokey. campfire, vegetable ash, waxy fruit, savory minerality, medicinal and slightly bitter finish. reminds me of ardbeg. big, bold, tasty. the end of the dram was considerably less smoke-forward.
COak
229 reviewsLot 01CDBS15 from 2015. Smells of bubble gum and tastes of sugar cane. This is a special mezcal.
Lot 31CDIG03 Edition 9 2017 bottle 501/514. Not quite as good as the prior batch I had. This one is a little thin but overall good value.
Tyler
643 reviewsOrigen Raiz from Durango is one of the most unique mezcals I’ve ever tasted. At Mezcalogia in Oaxaca, I picked up a bottle of edition Cenizo-01 from 2015 that was produced by Noé Ramírez Varela. It’s almost like a fine cologne turned into an incredible mezcal. There are notes of melon, clove, cognac, and lavender. It is a bit hard to describe but very enjoyable. It is unlike any other mezcal from Durango I’ve tasted, but oddly enough reminds me a bit of the El Jolgorio Coyote.
Origen Raiz from Durango is one of the most unique mezcals I’ve ever tasted. At Mezcalogia in Oaxaca, I picked up a bottle of edition Cenizo-01 from 2015 that was produced by Noé Ramírez Varela. It’s almost like a fine cologne turned into an incredible mezcal. There are notes of melon, clove, cognac, and lavender. It is a bit hard to describe but very enjoyable. It is unlike any other mezcal from Durango I’ve tasted, but oddly enough reminds me a bit of the El Jolgorio Coyot
Jonny
708 reviewsLot 01CDBS15 from 2015. Edition Cenizo – 15. Bottle 55/2000 from producer Nor Ramirez Varela. 48% ABV. Aromas of milk chocolate and fresh cherries. Super rounded in the mouth. No harshness whatsoever with lots of notes of sugar cane. Very agave forward and sugary. This had been sitting in the closet for almost a year after initially opening it. Perhaps the additional aging helped it a bit, but it is absolutely incredible.
Bildo
1 reviewI am proud to work hand and hand with the cortes famili Asís and I had the oportunity off meeting when I was thieir importer in australia back in 2013 when we had the oportunity of introduction el Jolgorio and Nuestra Soledad to the aussies, it all about caring and respecting the proces all we did take care of the land and love and respect to proces itself it unique what we got …
c_woodger
4 reviewsWOW. Durango juice made by Oaxacan hands!!! I came across this Mezcal whilst in Oaxaca in Asis’s bar Mezcalogia. Great balance to this Mezcal as you would expect. Subtle charred oak smokiness, minerality lots of vanilla and caramel with lingering citrus notes. A little short on the finish but a great expression of Cenizo.