Recent reviews

BATCH: MIA-T2003US, 46.39%, 200ml
José Díaz Bustamante

Nose – Vegetal, earthy, and slightly sweet. Wet wood, fresh cut grass, faint gasoline, cucumbers, and some produce-section aromas.

Palate – Hot and tangy; has a bit of a punch, but not too spicy! Bubblegum, a burst of citrus, ripe oranges, banana, a little rose water, and some vegetal notes of green peppers and jalapeños.

Finish – Deep, rich, and fruity. Passion fruit, grapes, apples, fruit punch.

Fantastic, really surprising pour! Very tasty and so much going on in the palate. The layers of flavors just coalesce. I’d say on par with Jolgorio’s expression. La Medida has been a sleeper, and continues to impress me with their offerings.

LOTE: 1-2021, 43%, 200ml

Nose – Sweet and very mellow. Pool water, chlorine, grapefruit, dry erase marker, wet dirt, and some cream.

Palate – Tangy. The first sips are an initial burst of burnt citrus; orange, tamarind, ginger, and some smoke.

Finish – A bit bittersweet; dark chocolate, tobacco, cigarette butts.

Good value! The smokiness lends itself to being great for cocktails. Decent sipper in the low end, but lacks a tasty punch to hold its own. Great messaging and branding; awesome label art!

Very smooth for such a high abv. It leaves the tongue tingly. Usually I don’t think that Tepaztates are worth the premium, but this one is.

I had a shot at a restaurant so the bottle wasn’t available. It’s not as smooth as other Pechugas, perhaps it’s the other meats. Spicy, earthy, strong flavors. I wouldn’t get a bottle.

Nose is similar to the Mexicano with some of that alto fruit funkiness. Taste has more alto to me than anything ad well, but this is definitely my favorite of the brand! Bold sweet citrius taste (limes, lemons), dark cocoa, and yet a slight green earthiness too. Candy sweet tarts. For 50% this really is easy sipping.
Review #207

Subtle but great smell – green and tropical fruits like mango. Grape seeds. Carries through to the taste. Some darker undertones as others have mentioned – coffee (especially in the aftertaste), cocoa nibs, leather. Rahkal got it with the 7up note, haha. Also, some candy like sweet tarts. Slightly tangy and briny finish.
Review# 206

Batch from 2015

So much grape jelly and aloe jumping out of the glass! Hibiscus flowers and lemongrass in there too but the nose is so soft for how much it carries. Grape jelly continues once you sip, but has mango and guava cream to add to the texture, supple leather, clay, and faint smoke run the background. Trails off elegantly, with clay and very gentle floral bits.

Unreal stuff, unbelievable fresh and gentle for just how much is going on

Batch CUASCO 4-21

Bay leaves, oregano, jalapeño, fresh cut cabbage and ripe summer cherries jump at your nose. Deep red fruits lead the palate with other dark berries, cherries, moss, and ash. Mouthfeel is very full and creamy. Cherry jam and cigar smoke leads you to a long and rich woody finish.

Nose: rotten melon, overnight oats, coconut cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, petrichor

Palate: syrupy caramel on the front end, tangy vanilla, cantaloupe, candied limes. Finish is honey jalapenos and minerality.

This is layered complex and beautiful. Just unreal good. The mouthfeel is great and no type of note dominates. Let so well put together.

Update: Tried this next to the Melate Benigno and they are definitely different. Melate is all fruit and tangy. This has more layers, spice and minerality. Both are fantastic

Lot SCM-152

Insanely soft and tropical on the nose, sweet watermelon, cantaloupe, mango, snap peas, lemon zest and lime halves. I can’t help but keep coming back to specifically a Pecos cantaloupe on the palate with raw sugar and cinnamon. Soft clay and grapefruit bitterness. Smoke comes on about halfway through and lasts to the end, very mild with bits of dry hay

Lot TP015 Bottle 703/900 47.8% maestro mezalero Enrique Jimenez Fidencio sample on 3/14/2024. Aroma’s out of the bottle are sweet smoke and a little bit of funk some sourness. Taste follows pretty much to suit simple alcohol a bit of burn and sweet smoke again. Getting a lot of plastics and phenolics on this one kind of rough.

Lot: 00319 ABV: 46.2%

Tried a copita at Sayulita Tap Room in Indio in February 2023.

Nose: Clean, minerals, and floral notes.

Palate: Strong minearlity, floral, mild tropical fruit, slight bitterness and subdued background heat. Great mouthfeel, a little buttery.

Overall a solid tobalá

April 2019, Lot: 29, 46.5% abv

Nose: BBQ, purple nerds, juniper, cardboard

Palate: smoke, vegetal flavors, mild heat, light sweetness, paper mache, coffee creamer.

Overall, a bit too smoke forward and the flavors are a bit muted. Slightly disappointed with this release compared to other Mezcalero releases. And definitely many better Tepeztates that I have sampled.

48.33% abv, Batch: CALI-012, Bottle 101/120, 2021

Three fantastic magueys, really exciting ensemble.

Nose: Apricot, hay, wax, and spice (clove)

On the palate, the Jabalí and the Tobalá come through strongly, great minerality as the backbone, generous heat, tart fall fruit, herbaceous flavors, and a bit of umami. Green/vegetal tastes from the Tepeztate are more present after getting more air. Really enjoyed this ensemble of these three magueys, I will look for others.

2017 harvest; edition 17; bottle 211/300
fruity on the nose; very smoothe and nice tasting; raw agave; tyler gets grass and I get a little soap; very fresh and fruity

Bottle Barn batch. I tried the whole Tr3s Tiempos line in a tasting and this was my favorite expression. It’s very delicious. I didn’t write down any tasting notes at the time but I remember liking it very much.

When a Mezcalero bottle is on the spirit list at a restaurant in Chicago, you grab it lol surprisingly only $16 for a 2 oz pour, too, which is very reasonable in my opinion. First word that comes to mind for this one is bright! I get the lemony/citrus/pine on the front end from the Jabali and then the tepeztate really comes through! I like that the espadin adds to this one but isn’t overpowering— would love to know the breakdown of percentages of each maguey used. Really well made

Had a 2 oz pour of this last night and first time tasting it outside of the Sierrudo-Arroqueno ensamble I have from 5S. The arroqueno was fantastic by itself! Really had fun drinking this one, makes you feel like you’re back in Minas. Very earthy, leathery, and tastes like a hard days work lol bbq sauce and roasted salsa flavors peak through as well. Very complex and the more you drink the more you taste— long, enjoyable finish as well. Highly recommend.

Lot 26, bottle 55 of 150, 41.5% ABV.

Expectations were high — the price, the rarity, the reviews full of superlatives… I bought it weeks ahead of my birthday and then waited for then to try it which built things up too. Incredible nose, but the palate? Honestly, a bit of a disappointment. Not that it’s horrible, it’s funky and interestingly different compared to other agave spirits I’ve tried. Lots of forest aromas and tastes — pine, cedar, juniper etc. and that distinctively funky raicilla flavor which I’m still not sure about. Maybe just not my jam, maybe I need more of them… Beyond the forest flavors I didn’t get a lot else beyond some sweetness. After some weeks even the forest notes calmed down. Glad I tried it but not at all sure it’s what I would buy again at this price point.

UPDATE: 6 weeks later. Wow it tastes good now and/or my brain has caught up with my taste buds and is appreciating this. The forest has calmed down even further and now it seems sweet, rich, complex and balanced. Would actually buy another bottle after all, just might open and then leave it alone for a bit.

Grabbed this one today— slowly making my way through the Mezcalero series in a non linear fashion. First pour, somewhat unimpressed but wasn’t a massive price tag on this one given the age. Slight chocolate and mint and a bit of fruitiness but I would have guessed an Espadin in a blind taste test at this point. The texture and lingering mouthfeel is pleasant though. I’m hoping with the next few pours and opening up a bit that it will change and will certainly update my score if so! A bit of a letdown at this point, however.

Edit: this has been about half full for a month or so and I’m updating to 4 stars from 3.5. Getting more of the chocolate notes that others picked up and it’s much more enjoyable and complex now. Much darker than other arroquenos I’ve had but still solid. Feels less like an Espadin after sitting for a bit.