I read Mezcal reviews all the way to the local store with the largest selection. They had none of them except one brand we’ve had a lot of so I decided to take a stab at Aprendiz Espadin. It has a nice label. On the way home I decided to put a little on my wrist and take a whiff. Smoke, nice. I also got hints of mint, botanicals, and a fresh herb smell. At home, I poured myself a shot and sipped on it. Yuck. What was this? The smoke is more like liquid smoke shot, and the finish is a smoky burn that leaves my mouth feeling astringent and basic. The depth of the odor is gone and I’m left with something monodimensional like rubbing alcohol steeped in smoke. I really thought I’d like this but it’s just basic and a little gross. My wife came home and I said “I bought mezcal, sweeties!” I listened to her get a glass and pour a shot and then “Ugh, oh, whoa, yuck.” “Like it?” I called out. “It’s terrible,” she responded. “I know,” I said, “and it only cost me $50!” “I’m going to kill you!” That concludes my review and I hope you will not purchase this unless you get it for much less money.

We were cautious about the cost, but once we got this baby home we were very pleased with the flavor, the smoothness, and the complexity. I loved how much the smoke comes through, but more importantly I loved the subtle hints of other indescribable flavors it presented. We had a party and everyone ended up sipping this mezcal and abandoning their wine. At one point someone used this in a margarita with mix, but we were able to safely escort them from the party unscathed.

Nice middle of the road mezcal. We’ve sipped it but it’s probably better with as a drink. It’s your everyday table red of the mezcal world. Smooth, but not overly complex.

The most disappointing bottle of mezcal we’ve purchased so far this year. The problem in a nutshell is that there is no there there. It’s unbalanced, ethanol forward and has a taste like bootleg ferments that can be purchased at a quarter the price in Mexico. The ethanol rides above what tastes like a cheap tequila. There’s zero smoothness, zero subtlety. We tried making a margarita from it but the taste just ruins perfectly good limes. It’s gross and for the price it feels like a total ripoff. You’re paying for the bottle and the box. There’s no craft here.