Mezcal Review #11 – Maguey Melate Tobala (September 2020 Club Pick)

Agave: Tobala

Mezcalero: Juan Abel Quiroz Agustin

Region: Santa Maria, Sola de Vega

Still Type: Clay Pot

46.9% ABV

Additional Info: This mezcalero only drinks Espadin after his doctor told him that Tobala had too many nutrients and was making his stomach upset (so sayeth the Maguey Melate Instagram account!)

Nose: Oooooooh awesome, great intensity. Savory, floral, fruity, dusty, and smokey. Smoked meats, lime skin, clay, and orange blossoms.

Taste: Creamy and thick, good lactic sweetness (cream cheese frosting). Fresh lime juice with mint. Turns more coastal with seashells, brine, lemon, and a little vanilla. Malty black tea sans tannins and sandalwood.

Finish: Smoked mints turning into a sweet mineral/clay note after a few seconds.

Notes: This is very good (or else I’m just a sucker for clay pot mezcals). I liked the clay pot tobasiche a couple months back just a hair better than this, but just barely. Keep it up Melate!

Score: 7/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: NETA Espadin (Agave Mixtape Volume 1)

Mezcal Review #10 – Maguey Melate Tepextate (August 2020 Club Pick)
Agave: Tepextate
Mezcalero: Hermogenes Vasquez Garcia
Region: Logoche, San Luis Amatlan
Still Type: Copper Pot
45.5% ABV

Additional Info: From the back of the card: “This region is known for its iron-rich red clay soil full of dark nutrients and producing fields full of biodiversity. The makeup of the soil tends to stay cooer and hold water longer, which leads to a longer agave lifespan, more nutrients absorbed, and ultimately a richer flavor profile. The region is full of microclimates and terrains, so this macro characteristic doesn’t necessarily hold true for all batches”. Make of that what you will.

Nose: Very herbal with strong superglue/acetone notes. Smoke, limoncello, bay leaf, lime skin, green onions, and stale beer.

Taste: Sweet and saline, lemon and smoke. We could well be on Islay! Reminds me strongly of Origen Raiz. Also some peppermint, black pepper, and ginger.

Finish: Seashells and smoke turning into white chocolate over time.

Notes: This is my first tepextate, and I’ve heard they can be very herbal. I’m not sure whether that superglue/acetone note is part of what people are calling herbal so I can’t say if it’s a production flaw or just the taste of Tep, but it doesn’t work for me. This is just a little too wild to really get into (hence the late review, I never really found myself craving a glass). Certainly not my favorite offering from Melate, but next month’s has me excited – stay tuned!

Score: 5/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect

Mezcal Review #9 – Maguey Melate Tobasiche (July 2020 Club Pick)
Agave: Tobasiche
Mezcalero: Felix Cruz Angeles
Region: Santa Catarina Minas
Still Type: Clay Pot
47.7% ABV

Additional Info: The pinas were hand crushed, a task which is apparently especially arduous when working with tobasiche.

Nose: Savory and mineral. Pineapple, lime, fried meat (think gyros or donner), roasted tomato, and mint. Also kind of a grassy/herbal thing that reminds me of some rhum agricole and New Zealand sauv. blanc – by which I mean gooseberries – by which I mean cat piss. This is a wild nose, I dig it.

Taste: Savory and dry for a mezcal. Very brothy before it turns minty and nicely sour. Hard not to think of pho. With some air a chocolate note comes out along with cream cheese frosting.

Finish: Meaty and spicy, those gyros are making a return. The clay slowly takes over and the whole thing becomes very mineral. Very nice, makes you go back for another sip.

Notes: Ooooh boy, I love this. Tasting it side by side with last month’s Tobala/Mexicano I may have been too generous in assigning that one an 8, it’s a tad rough in comparison. This however certainly merits a high score.

Score: 8/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: Not sure, stay tuned.

Mezcal Review #8 – Origen Raiz “Del Espiritu”
Agave: Cenizo
Mezcalero: Ignacio Grijalva Paulino, Ignacio Grijalva Santiago, and Noe Ramirez Varela
Region: Nombre de Dios, Tuitan – Durango
Still Type: Copper Pot
48% ABV

Additional Info: A sample of this came with the last maguey melate box. Interesting stuff, as the agave type and region that aren’t very common.

Nose: Fruity bubblegum, lime, and mint. A little hoppy, a touch smoky, and a wee bit coconutty.

Taste: Starts out savory, which is interesting after that sweet nose. Then takes a turn – vanilla ice cream, cantaloupe, lemon juice, and smoke. Sort of a sweetened Kilkerran 12 y.o., but with the volume turned out. The notes here are nice but they aren’t very strong.

Finish: Cooling and minty. Smoke, white pepper, and asparagus.

Notes: Well, it’s certainly unique. A lot of notes here that I’ve never had in mezcal before, I just wish it was a little louder. The palate especially is disappointingly thin, and air didn’t really seem to help. Maybe other batches are better.

Score: 5/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite
10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: Maguey Melate Club Pick July 2020 – Tobasiche

Mezcal Review #7 – Banhez Ensemble

Agave: 90% Espadin, 10% Barril

Mezcalero: Various

Region: Ejutla

Still Type: Copper Pot

42% ABV

Additional Info: Made by a cooperative of mezcaleros, this bottle has a reputation as a good value. At ~$30/liter, it’s pretty hard to beat! Let’s dive in.

Nose: Cooked agave, white pepper, lime, triple sec. Some smoke – closer to peat than mesquite.

Taste: Drier than most mezcals I’ve had. Nothing really jumps out right away, but then some fruits and smoked meat emerge. Cantaloupe and mint. There’s a hit of white pepper as you swallow. Only thing holding it back is the strength, at 46 percent or so this would be dynamite.

Finish: Turns slightly sweet on the finish. Mineral/clay, some seawater and finally white chocolate.

Notes: This is totally respectable as a sipper. At the price they’re charging you wouldn’t bat an eye at throwing some into a paloma or a margarita, but this would also be an excellent entry for a noobie into mezcal. BIN.

Score: 6/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: Something from Melate, not sure what yet.

Mezcal Review #6 – Maguey Melate Ensemble (June 2020 Club Pick)

Agave: 50% Tobala, 50% Espadilla (a.k.a. Mexicano Verde)

Mezcalero: Federico Valentin Alva Ibanez (Don Fede)

Region: San Nicolas Huajuapan, Puebla

Still Type: Copper Pot

46.7% ABV

Additional Info: Made by a 95-year-old mezcalero and coolest human being alive, this ensemble was put together to temper some of the intensity of a batch of espadilla with a gentler batch of tobala. This batch is interesting for a lot of reasons, but I’m mostly excited that it has given me an excuse to talk about the effects of air in open bottles, something which I have noticed is a lot more intense in mezcal than in other spirits. So, this review will be broken into two pieces – notes and a score for my first pour from the bottle, and the same after it had been open for a few days. Let’s dive in!

First pour

Nose: Herbal (mint and eucalyptus) and butterscotch. Some minerality, think of hot mountain rocks. Grows more intense with time, heading towards nail polish remover (though not unpleasantly so). Lime and orange blossom. Smells a bit like a good Thai restaurant and a lot like a west coast IPA.

Taste: Umm…this is strange. Nothing? Some sweetness, a bit like cotton candy. But that’s really it. Very odd after the pretty intense nose.

Finish: Here we go, the complexity is back. Seawater and smoke, reminds me of Ardbeg 10. Some anise as well, very nice.

Notes: Great nose and finish, but the non-existent palate is holding it back.

Score: 6/10

Several Days Later

Nose: Still very herbal, actually more so now. Again mint and eucalyptus, as well as strong fruity hops. Still in IPA territory.

Taste: There we go, much better. Tons of fruit – strawberries, raspberries, pineapple, lime. Also sweet tarts and cotton candy. Excellent.

Finish: Still coastal and islay-ish, but now with a pretty prominent spearmint note as well.

Notes: Air can work wonders. I certainly won’t claim it to be an absolute law of mezcal, but in my experience open bottles only get better – very much the opposite of scotch/brandy/bourbon/rum, which I feel tend to fade with oxygen.

Score: 8/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: Banhez Ensemble

Mezcal Review #5 – Maguey Melate Arroqueno (May 2020 Club Pick)

Additional Info: This batch was distilled from semi-cultivated Arroquenos (planted and then left unattended to reach maturity) and distilled in 2014, so it has spent considerable time resting. Fermentation was unusually long at 15 days due to the high sugar concentration in the agaves, which may have improved the aromatics. More information can be found on Maguey Melate’s website and youtube channel.

Nose: Intense butterscotch and cream cheese frosting, you can smell this from rooms away. A touch of mint, peppers, orange, and some mixed herbs/aromatic woods. After the bottle has had some time to air out, I get a strong similarity to some oaky red wines (California Syrah) – herbs and roasted meats.

Taste: A little sweet, lots of butterscotch and caramel. Not at all harsh even at full strength (I dare not call it smooth). Something almost like sherry, I’ve tasted this before in good aged tequilas but have never really been able to pin it down. Think sherry without the earthy qualities. Not super complex but no off notes either.

Finish: There’s a mineral note here, but it’s not particularly strong or long lasting.

Notes: The nose is phenomenal and I really want to love this but the taste and finish fall a little short. They’re not bad by any means, just not as interesting. I have gone back and forth on the rating between 6 and 7 but tasting it next to the Coyote from last month (which I awarded a 7), I like this less. So:

Score: 6/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: No idea, probably Melate’s June 2020 pick!

Mezcal Review #3 – Maguey Melate Coyote (April 2020 Club Pick)

Mezcalero: Noe Garcia Olivera

Region: San Juan Bautista, Sola de Vega

Still Type: Clay Pot

Batch: NOE-COY-001

49.1% ABV

Additional Info: The first of a pair of agave Americana family mezcals for Maguey Melate club members in the April – May 2020 pack, this one made from cultivated Coyote agaves. Lots more info about this batch on Maguey Melate’s youtube channel.

Nose: Lime jaritos! Slightly funky, overripe fruits. In a narrow-necked glass mesquite smoke and BBQ meats become apparent.

Taste: Very sweet – powdered sugar and citrus. Becomes more savory with cream cheese frosting, pistachios, pepper, and grilled meat.

Finish: Initially a little smoke and meat, evolving into mint before a loooooong clay note. The clay stays with me all night.

Notes: My first bottle from the club and it’s a winner, this is delicious. Very glad I joined, can’t wait to get into May’s Arroqueno!

Score: 7/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Next Up: Bozal Tobasiche

Mezcalero: NOM-0472X

Region: Rio de Ejutla

Still Type: Copper Pot

47% ABV

Additional Info: A very reasonably priced (for tobasiche) bottle from Bozal in a cool ceramic bottle. Information beyond that is hard to come by, Bozal aren’t the most transparent company in the world, but several of their bottlings (including this tobasiche and their cuishe) crop up frequently in online recommendations.

Nose: Cooked agave, cream cheese, anise, cedar, and assorted herbs.

Taste: Sweet and herbal, almost a sweetened absinthe. Becomes more mineral (wet clay) and then spicy, like black pepper and anise together. Changes a lot as you hold it on your tongue, very dynamic spirit.

Finish: More anise, eventually fading into cooked agave (think high quality blanco tequila). Mouth numbing like an absinthe.

Notes: Super interesting stuff, if you served this to me blind and said it was absinthe, I would probably believe you (though it would be a weird ass absinthe). This is not an expensive bottle, I paid around $60, and it certainly won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it hits a sweet spot for me.

Score: 7/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Mezcalero: Pedro Vasquez

48% ABV.

Edition: 11

Produced In: 2018

For those who may not know, Nuestra Soledad is El Jolgorio’s lineup of region specific espadins. They are very competitively priced (between $50-$60 most places), and well worth looking out for. This one hails from Lachigui, Miahuatlan and seems to be generally regarded as one of the best of the lineup.

Nose: Sake and watermelon. Floral, with just a touch of smoke. It’s on the lighter side but I like it quite a bit.

Taste: Smokey mint, fruity. Some barbeque sauce and herbs + aromatic woods. Hard to pin down at times. A little hot for my tastes.

Finish: Cooling, minty.

Notes: A slight disappointment after I was blown away by my bottle of Chichicapa, but by no means bad spirit. Despite being at the same ABV as my bottle of Chichicapa it comes across hotter and the flavors seem less focused. I like the nose a lot, but that’s not quite enough to lift this bottle for me.

Score: 5/10

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.

2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.

3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.

4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.

5 | Good | Good, just fine.

6 | Very Good | A cut above.

7 | Great | Well above average

8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.

9 | Incredible | An all time favorite

10 | Perfect | Perfect

Nose: Complex wood smoke, citrus peels, and something hard to pin down that I associate with agave spirits in general. I suppose some sort of roasted agave? Hard to say.

Taste: Barbecued mint cream cheese frosting. Which sounds wild but is very pleasant in practice. Toothpaste and charred wood. Sweet and sour.

Finish: Smoked thin mints. Weird, but again pleasant.

Notes: A lot of these tasting notes don’t really sound like they would play nicely together, but somehow it works. This is remarkably complex spirit that’s a little different each time I come back to it, impressive stuff. Wish I had been into Mezcal back before Del Maguey got bought out by Pernod, but this is still excellent.