The Anejo is my favorite of the Mestizo mezcals. This Anejo and the Ilegal Anejo are probably my two favorite on the market, and this one is much friendlier to my wallet. The nose is incredibly rich in caramel, brown sugar, and sugar cane pulp. The faint aroma of charcoal is also present. On the palate, this is wildly smooth and balanced. It has notes of caramel, molasses, fig, plantains, and charred maple. I prefer to sip this mezcal straight, but it’s also great for making mezcal Old Fashions. Lot 12-2000-C03

Lot SBG015/13. This is the perfect session Mezcal. It’s easy to drink, and relatively cheap. It has a surprisingly strong aroma of acid and rubbing alcohol, but almost none of that carries into the taste. The palate includes rich notes of caramel, sweet cream, and hazelnut. It’s well balanced and evenly textured.

Lot 18 from November 2015. Piney and herbaceous on the nose with tasting notes of more pine, lavender, vanilla, and fresh rosemary. I get a lot of grapefruit aromas and ruby red flavors. This Mezcal is like no other. It’s easy to drink and has some distinct flavoring that I haven’t found in other Mezcal. It’s fanciful, complex, and delightful.

Lot TB14. Very rich with slight minerality and notes of vanilla, anise, tanned leather, candied yams, and freshly roasted coffee. This is really a special Espadin with a great back story. Definitely a sipper and a great one at that.

Lot 006. This is another incredible Pechuga. The other mezcal Tosba’s are OK, but this one is really great. It’s very meaty with strong chicken notes and hints of apple, potato, and dark chocolate. This is one of my favorite Pechuga mezcals out there. It’s a bit hot for 46%, but the heat blends well with the flavor and aroma.

Lot NO243C from Candido Reyes. This is a really nice Barril. There’s a salty minerality in the nose that doesn’t carry over the taste at all. The flavor is perfectly balanced, with notes of rich agave, almond, and black pepper. It has an elegant texture that is almost creamy through the finish. There aren’t too many straight Barril mezcals that I’ve seen, and so far none of them that I’ve tried have been as good as this one.

One of my favorite mezcals. This is super vegetal in aroma and taste. It’s herbal and rich with notes of ash, green grass, smoked apricot, mango, and clove. The mouthfeel is textured and velvety. This is another incredible Mezcal from Don Valente Angel. It’s one of his best and it’s limited as a one-time release.

GAD-0380. Fresh green aromas of tea and newly cut hay. This is a nice Mezcal. I like Gracias a Dios and this is no exception. It’s got some sweet floral notes of violet and rose. Cuixe is an interesting agave and this Mezcal displays its characteristics nicely.

The bottle I tried was from Tio Leonardo. This starts out sweet and a little spicy and then moves into greater complexity and more Arroqueno flavor. It’s a bit vegetal and fruity with notes of fresh berries, but this really straddles the line between fruit and spice. It’s perfectly balanced with a full mouthfeel. Fantastic!

Lot SLR 125. Aromas of green pepper and freshly fallen rain. This Mezcal is very rich iwth character that exudes notes of freshly ground pepper, cloves, and a bit of ripe tangerine. As a rare release, this is really delightful. It’s full flavor and extremely soft and balanced.

Citrus and smoky on the nose. Tasting notes of apple and dates. There’s a good amount of fruit in this, but it doesn’t overpower the rich taste of cooked Agave. This mezcal would get three stars as a sipper, as I prefer to sip their Reposado and Anejo. But it gets four stars as a mixer.

Batch MJ18-15. This is a really good Espadin. It’s a bit hot at +50% ABV, but still soft enough for sipping. Tasting notes of fresh coconut, almond, cinnamon, and fruity hints of apple and apricot. The finish is warm and clean.

Lot 82754. Very clean on the nose with vegetal aromas. This Mezcal has some strong fruity notes of orange, plantain, and grapefruit. It’s complex and balanced with a lingering finish. Highly recommend this one.

Lot 06-BOT. It’s kind of tough to rate this mezcal in any traditional fashion. The botanicals that are added during distillation really take over the flavor and aroma. I’m giving it four stars because it’s better than the only other agave distillate I’ve had that uses this style of gin botanicals. The other one is the Gracias a Dios Mezcal Gin. The aromas of this Pierde Almas are very similar to gin, with strong juniper and pine notes. The taste, however, is quite different from gin. There are still strong notes of juniper and lots of mint, but the rich taste of cooked agave seeps into every sip. If you’re in the mood to drink mezcal, this might not be the best choice, but it may be a good fit if you’re looking to try something creative and unique that’s made with agave.

Found an old bottle of the same batch that I reviewed 7 years ago (see older from 2015 notes below). This one has definitely evolved since then. This is still intensely aromatic with notes of fresh flowers and herbs, sweet cream, rhubarb, sweet potatoes, and raw earth. The palate is where this really shines. This is packed with notes of tropical fruits, strawberries, fresh mint, and tobacco. The mouthfeel is big and robust. Tasting this again in Dec of 2023, after the mezcal further evolved in the bottle for many years, this is an easy 5 stars. My previous review in 2015 was 4 stars (for reference). If you somehow find some of this old batch somewhere, drink it!

Lot 12 from January 2015. This mezcal is intensely aromatic with herbaceous notes of wet leaves and clay. It has a very balanced and well-rounded feel, that I’ve noticed in other mezcal that is aged in glass before bottling. The taste has some of the characteristic copper tones found in other Cupreata mezcals, but the copper doesn’t overpower this mezcal. It’s piney with notes of fresh tropical fruit, pepper, and wet earth.

Lot MK006/16ENS. A bit leathery with notes of vanilla, cream, banana, and smoke. All the Koch Mezcal I’ve tasted has been good, and this Ensamble is no exception. There’s a lot going on between the agave, but the result is even keel.

Lot A-08-T-16. Made by Aguilino Garcia Lopez. Very clean on the nose and fruity in taste. The spice doesn’t overpower it as it does other Tepeztates, and it’s very high ABV. There is some copper in taste with notes of jalapeno, smoked green pepper, leather, and baked banana leaves. This is one of my favorite Tepeztate mezcals. It’s very hot, and very good.

GAD-X-0379. I generally like Gracias a Dios mezcal. There’s definitely training wheels on this one, but it tastes great and the pricing is fantastic. This is way cheaper than other Tepeztate mezcals out there. It doesn’t have the same full flavor as others on the market, but it still has all of the typical characteristics and notes. It’s a great deal and it’s very easy to drink.

Edition 09 from 2014. Made by Gregorio Garcia. Lots of green peppers on the nose. This is very fresh and clean smelling. The flavor is rich. It starts out spicy with notes of jalapeno and ash, but it smooths quickly in more vegetal and earthy tones. Good Tepeztate mezcals are hard to find, and this one is fantastic.

Giving this 4 stars overall. I’ve had several batches of this and it seems to level out around 4 stars, with some batches being better than others. The December 2015 batch DS004-T is absolutely incredible. It’s maybe one of the best tepextate’s I’ve ever tasted and I’d give that 5 stars. Lot D3003-T, however, from Sept. 2015 is more like three stars. It’s nicely balanced with a good amount of sweetness and spice. The spirit is fairly thick and viscous with notes of caramelized fruit and freshly ground peppercorn. Good Tepeztate mezcals are hard to find, and this one is pretty darn good.