PA01-19CA, Nov 2018, 122 Litres. Bottle 29/70. 48% ABV.
A pungent buttercream bomb with a side of banana cream pie. Like sipping a smoothie of fresh Belgian chocolates, malted milk, ripe bananas and toasted butterscotch. The finish is long and savoury with a dusting of cardamom, mint flavoured Tic Tacs, lychee jellies and black soil. This juice dropped me into the mezcal omniverse. Even the resulting evaporate is a fresh summer breeze. A blast from Delfino Tobón!
Batch AE-XXSLB. Bottle 001/600. 46.4% ABV.
This bottle tends to shift as you make your way through it, especially on the nose: Early on it’s French crêpes and maple syrup, then raisin toast and plum pudding, now ripe cantaloupe and vanilla ice cream. On the palate a tasty lactic flavour adds depth to notes of brown sugar, Portuguese egg custard, and green banana. The finish is spicy and floral with black pepper and damp moss. A delicious ensamble from Don Baltazar.
MP01-19CA, Nov 2019, 120 Litres. Bottle 89/98. 48.8% ABV.
It took a few pours to wrap my head around this bottle. When first opened, a notable funk like “reptile terrarium” wafted up and out (incredibly, this batch was fermented in rawhide). This eventually fades to fine Italian leather as other notes emerge like Campbell’s tomato soup, ripe bananas, citrus, and mint. The palate is rich in brown sugar, chocolate, sourdough, ancho chillies and other spices — like a saltwater sponge toffee dipped in spicy mayan chocolate. The finish is long and savoury and ends in sugar snap peas. Stunning from start to finish. An easy fiver from Marcelo Luna!
Lote PCF04-1501. Botella 09752/10500. 45% ABV.
Finishing the last of bottle 09752 — recently rediscovered after it was abandoned in a rarely-used cupboard above our refrigerator. The aroma is a bit off, like citrus fruit fermenting in an old leather pouch. The palate is sweet and savoury, tasting of brown sugar and dried apricots. It reminds me of a buttery mexicano as it is now. Although a bit funky, this juice from Petronilo is tasty and still has bite.
