Recent reviews

Very clean cupreata, smells of fresh sugarcane, dust, light smoke. Green chartreuse flavours, cucumber, cocoa nibs — more crisp than most cupreatas I have tried but not thin. Medium mouthfeel, good structure. 2021 batch, 49,7% ABV, 50cl bottle. Not quite the same 2021 batch COak mentioned, seems it was bottled in Europe.

Clean nose with notes of white sugar, honey, slate, and cold granite. The palate has notes of watermelon, dark mango, overripe cantaloupe, and a touch of milk chocolate. Very nice and soft. Syrupy mouthfeel. Lot 1. Bottle 630/800

Drank this one in an Irish pub in Mexico City right before watching the Luchas in Arena Mexico.
I don’t have specific memories of the flavors, I just remember it being a little spicy and tropical, earthy and very easy sipping for +100 proof.
Loving those Durango Mezcales!

Really yummy approachable mezcal. Dry blueberry 7UP with a touch of copper. Some caramel and fruit jam. This was a 250ml Aguerrido Don Refugio Cupreata bottle purchased in Mexico (seems appropriate to leave a review on this page); this was actually a bottle that Mezcaloteca put their label over the original back label. “Madurado en Vidrio” on the neck of the bottle. Batch 02PAPSALA-21, distilled in 2017, 51% ABV.

Very light on the nose, with hints of lavender, grapefruit, pineapple, and fresh cream. The palate is also light, with notes of bubblegum, lilac, powdered sugar, and cream soda. Looking back at my notes from Mezcalero No 18, this is drastically different given it’s the same batch. Quite frankly, I like this one a lot more after having it sit for 5 years. Everything that was spiny or hot about Mezcalero 18 has completely disappeared. This is really nice.

This is a hard nut to crack. Aromas of slightly tart orange, spearmint, molasses, burnt sugar, and burning sage. The palate has some heat and is a bit sticky in mouthfeel. It’s got a little funk, notes of canned peaches, fruit cocktail, and oak. The ABV on this makes it tough to really dive into. I’ll need to let this sit in the back of the closet for awhile. Batch pick for Alamo City Liquors in San Antonio. Lot ACL2022. 55% ABV. Bottle 58/66.

Produccion: 2017
Botella: 106/780
Lot: 18-JHM-ENS

Produccion: Ferrero 2022
Botella: 11/811
Lot: 06010-PC

Musty-er than your standard tobala. Instead of opening with fruit and double bubble, it starts with tarragon, lime, and basil. More basil throughout, some fruit and leather on finish. Really really neat

Aromas of horseradish mustard, green olives, celery, limestone, and sea salt. The palate is deeply complex with notes of spicy mustard, oysters, green olive brine, jalapeno, and old hot dog water. This is a wild ride. The heat doesn’t really catch up to it at all. Great spirit. Lot PED-PUN-001

Love the nose on this! Extremely floral. Aromas of lilac, rose pedal, jasmine, orange blossom, and Pixie sticks. The palate is soft and much darker than the nose. Notes of orange chocolates, skim milk, a touch of black pepper, and some light caramel. I’m not a huge Durango head, but I do really enjoy this release. It’s much less lactic than many of the other bottles I’ve tasted from this region. Lot DAN-CEN-001

December 2019
47.6%
Nose : creamy and fruity. Something herbal..maybe some thyme. A little yeasty.
Taste : thick texture with lots of strawberry. Some clay and a little salty.
Finish : dry, sweet and a sliver of smoke.
High quality stuff with great balance. Drinkablity levels through the roof.

Lote 40 48.51% Aromas out of the bottle are soft fruit and very little alcohol SOFT coco and brown butter. Very clean mouth coating and buttery, pepper. No smoke incredibly smooth finish that just fades away makes you want more. I like the flavor integrations on this one nothing stands out but it just goes together really well. Once again the alcohol is well hidden

Lote 26 48.12% Aromas out of the bottle are bitter gunpowder and butterscotch Peppermint Pleasant. Sweet spearmint Peppermint flavors 1st hit the tongue And then fades into nothing But a crazy intense mint like tingling sensation remains for a long time. This is crazy good very unique and different from most other mezcals. Herbal and medicinal Mouthwash comes to mind. Sweet eucalyptus. After many tastings I have decided on wet moss with sweet green tea with frog watet

Lot J-01-E-21 50.1% Aromas out of the bottle are very subtle slate, wet dog, watery watered down alcohol and plastic phenolics. Flavors bring on a spritsy Candy like texture to your mouth and fades away rapidly and leaves a sweet aftertaste in your mouth. Really hides the percentage well. No smoke or fruit flavors are really detected in this one. I think once this one airs out some it’ll be a great bottle for the money.

Special. One of the best coyotes ive ever had

Bottle: 207/239 Lot#: DTRMT-07 2019 ABV: 50.7%

I don’t think we got to sample a tobalá back in 2017, but I probably would have sprung for a bottle if I had. Also drank several pours at Deckman’s in Baja at an incredible price point (about $13/pour). What a fantastic tobala. Floral, sweet, minerality. A hint of bubblegum, floral tastes like Gardena. I can taste the clay In a big way with this expression. I could drink this all day. I will need to track down a bottle at some point (probably not going to be at the same price point as I got in Baja).

Bottle 226/248 Lot: DTRML-03 2019 ABV: 49.9%

Sampled several pours of this Largo at Deckman’s in Baja in January 2023. At about twelve dollars a pour, you do have to have several pours. Second time with a largo from Real Minero since 2017. Not as great the barrill and not as luscious as the cuish we purchased from real minero in 2017, but this is a great karwinskii nonetheless. Not the nose of other karwinskiis, not the grassy or herbal aromas. A bit of thyme though and light sweetness. The flavors are quite delicious. Spiciness, caramel, and that same light herbal essence. The clay is not as pronounced as the barrill but so well balanced.

48% abv Lot: ACU0221C Bottle: 901

Picked up this 200 ml bottle at Tahona Baja in Jan, 2023. Toasted graham cracker, dark brown sugar, caramel popcorn, and stale garage (maybe after an oil change). Complex and inviting. Wish I had gotten a full 750, but you know, those border restrictions are a problem when you cross at San Ysidro, only one liter per person (which means a 750 and a 200). Don’t want to risk trying to bring across a couple extra bottles when a border agent is having a bad day.

Bottle 8/60 ABV: 46.8%

Got to taste this gem at a mezcal tasting at Madre a couple years ago and my wife fortunately sprung for a bottle. Lots of subtlety in this expression. Faint smell of burnt sugar, stewed plum, and tart green apple. Flavors are subdued and earthy at first then open up into graham cracker, mint, tarragon, honeysuckle blossom, and white pepper heat that is not too overpowering. Teps are some of my favorite sippers because there are usually a great deal of complexity and nuance to the flavors. This expression has exactly those qualities that made me fall in love with tepextates. Might be tough to track down a bottle of this release with only sixty total bottles, but NETA does have some outstanding texpextates in their line-up.