The Single Village Del Maguey Vida de San Luis Del Rio Mezcal

Continuing our exploration of mezcal with the widely distributed (thanks to the distillery's purchase by international spirits company Pernod Ricard) and easily recognized Del Maguey Vida de San Luis Del Rio Mezcal  ($37). The distillery - named after the Taino word for agave - was founded in 1995 by Ron Cooper who envisioned opening the United States to previously unavailable "100% certified organic, artisanal Mezcal produced using original handcrafted methods".  And in particular, this brand was intended to highlight individual villages by releasing single village mezcals. The green bottles are also easily recognized by their distinctive Ken Price labels and palm fiber bottle covers. The Vida label is Price's artistic interpretation of an agave farm.

The Vida is crafted as an entry-level Mezcal with "an ABV profile called for by bartenders around the world".  It is traditionally handcrafted from 100% mature agave Espadín by the family of Paciano Cruz Nolasco in the village of San Luis Del Rio.  The Nolascos are also responsible for the Crema de Mezcal, San Luis Del Rio, Madrecuixe, and Tobaziche labels. The Vida Mezcal starts with vicious smoke on aroma which may be why bartenders favor it as an ingredient. The smoke stretches like the palm fiber covers through the flavor profile. The base is a smooth and creamy sweet agave core laced with tropical fruit. The smooth tail lasts with zero burn and elevating the smoked agave. 

The first cocktail I tried with it is a version of the Mezcal Mule using our reliable Appalachian Brewing Company Ginger Beer. The ginger and smoke dance together as the bite from the ginger beer elevates the mezcal.  An alternative is to add Grapefruit juice to provide more tang and to lengthen consumption. Check back for more cocktail recipes. Cheers. 

Mezcal Mule
Ginger Beer
Del Maguey Vida
Lime juice

Del Maguey Vida Production Notes:
Village: San Luis Del Rio
Palenquero: Paciano Cruz Nolasco, Marcos Cruz Mendez
State: Oaxaca
Region: Valles Centrales
Maguey: Espadin
Agave Species: A. angustifolia haw
Age of Maguey: 7-8 years
Elevation: 2952 feet (900 meters)
Roast Duration: 3-8 days
Type of Wood: Mezquite, Quebrachi, Huamuchil, Pitayo,
Pochotle, Tepeguaje, Copal Tepomaco, Pino, Encino
Milling: Molino, Electric
Size of Tinas: 1400 L
Fermentation Duration: 8-10 days
Water Source: Rio Hormiga Colorada
Still Type: Copper
Still Size: 350 L
ABV of Mezcal: 42%
Liquid Profile: Vida is distilled to be more widely available with an ABV profile called for by bartenders around the world. 

BevFluence Cocktail Book Program 2021 - Negroni: More than 30 Classic and Modern Recipes for Italy's Iconic Cocktail

This spring, BevFluence has partnered with Ryland Peters & Small and CICO Books to review several Cocktail books starting with Negroni, More than 30 classic and modern recipes for Italy's iconic cocktail ($12) by David T. Smith and  Keli Rivers. My bar setup was void of each of the three central ingredients (Campari, gin, and vermouth) so I decided to go local as much as possible - obviously excluding the Campari. This Italian liqueur was created by Gaspare Campari in 1860 as a bitter aperitif made from various herbs, fruits, and spices. 

For the gin, I went with the excellent Joseph A. Magnus & Co Vigilant District Dry Gin ($35) that I first sampled at their Washington, D.C. distillery. This is a London-style dry gin that should be a decent alternative to the English gins. For vermouth, I learned that Mt. Defiance Distillery in Loudoun County Virginia produces a Sweet Vermouth ($19, 350ml).  This fortified wine starts at the Mt. Defiance Apple Brandy that is flavored with herbs and spices and blended with barrel-aged brandy, Vidal Blanc wine, local honey, and caramel syrup. 

The perfect place to start is with The Classic, just equal parts of all three ingredients. In this scenario, the bitter orange of the Campari takes center stage with the vermouth providing a slight balance with sweet flavors.  The gin was a little lost with this palate. 

I favored another recipe called Run Free & Naked which puts The Classic ingredients into an ice-filled and salt-rimmed pint glass. Then fill the remaining glass with sparkling hard cider. I choose the Corcoran Vineyards and Cidery PoPo Peach. This was an eye-opener and will be a summer favorite. 

The next recipe came from the Experimental Negroni section and is the Oaxacan which replaces the gin with mezcal in the Classic recipe. I had the Mezcal El Silencio Espadín available and this substitution seemed to elevate the Campari even more while also providing a smokey trail. Good for a change of pace.

Check back as we will up updating this post with more cocktail experiences as we leaf through the book. Cheers. 

Another non-traditional Negroni we enjoyed was the Kingston Negroni which is the Classic above with the gin replaced with rum. We used the Pilar Key West Rum and this combination provides a little smoothness and toastiness.

The Stout & Steadfast piqued our interest - as well as a seminar discussion - so we created this cocktail using equal parts from the Classic recipe - using Aviation American Gin.  The recipe calls for filling the remaining half-pint class with Guiness, but I used the Center of the Universe Donny Coffee Brown Ale. The Campari bitters start off the race, but the coffee and dry malt catch up and lead to a smooth relaxing finish. Actually liked the cocktail more than the beer on its own. 

We were waiting for warmer weather to make the Negroni Float, but couldn't wait. The recipe calls for smaller amounts of the Classic added with ice to a large glass. Then add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and slowly fill with cola or as in our case, Kutztown Sarsaparilla. Top with whipped cream and let the cola and ice cream integrate into the cocktail, then sip with a straw. The Negroni takes a back seat and I love our choice of Sarsaparilla which blends in nicely with the Campari. A worthy dessert. 

Mezcal El Silencio Espadín and the Taco Bamba Grapefruit - Vanilla Margarita

Continuing our venture into Mezcal, we recently purchased the Mezcal El Silencio Espadín ($30), a very traditional product produced in San Baltazar Guelavila, Oaxaca, and from 100% organically grown Espadin agave. According to the bio, the spirit is made by Pedro Hernández, a ninth-generation Maestro Mezcalero, and double-distilled in small batches. Apparently, in 2019 Constellation Brands took a minority stake in El Silencio which most likely explains how it's available in the local ABC store 

When sipping neat, it starts with the smokey agave aroma that we've come to expect, and then the palate is smooth and textured - with a soft profile.  I then added lime juice which added a little kick and interestingly boosted the aromatics. But we found its most usefulness, was the filler for the Grapefruit - Vanilla Margarita mix from Taco Bamba.  The smokiness added to the cocktail and the vanilla gave the feeling of aged mezcal -- but just to a Reposado. Cheers.

The Mezcal Union Uno & Killer Bee Cocktail

Mezcal comes from Nahuatl - the language spoken by the Aztecs - and translates to "oven-cooked agave".

Whereas Mesoamerican priests and elites cooked and fermented the juices of agave plants for a fermented beverage and recent archaeology points to a possible pre-Spanish distillation for religious ceremonies, the widespread distillation of  "oven-cooked agave" didn't occur until the Spanish Conquistadors arrived in the 16th century.

Over the ensuing centuries, the distillation of agave was codified into the production of Mezcal and its subset Tequila.  There are nearly 200 types of agave plants and Mezcal can be made from more than 40 of these - with the most popular being Espadín -- representing 90% of these spirits. In contrast, Tequila can only be made from the Blue Agave plant. Mezcal can be produced in nine different areas of Mexico with Oaxaca accounting for 85-90% of production. In contrast, Tequila can be produced in only five areas with Jalisco at its core. Finally, to produce Mezcal, the agave plants are cooked inside earthen pits that are lined with lava rocks and filled with wood and charcoal before being distilled in clay pots. In contrast, Tequila is typically produced by steaming the agave above ground and distilling multiple times in copper pots. 

My 2021 New Years Resolution included making an effort to drink more Mezcal and thus am starting the year with the Mezcal Union Uno ($37). This is a cooperative of local artisan families in Oaxaca and courtesy of Mezcal Reviews:

Their story says that when starting the company, an old man told them that the future of mezcal would be based on a UNIÓN. That's how they named the company, and that's how they decided to make a mezcal that featured different producer families. Though Pedro Hernandez is their master mezcalero, each bottle is produced by a union of Oaxacan families. There may be slight variations of flavor from batch to batch, but not much, as they are now using a Solera process to ensure better consistency. In February of 2017, Mezcal Union signed a distribution agreement with Diageo. The agreement keeps the ownership of Union in the hands of its founders, while opening the doors to a wider distribution network.

I purchased a bottle labeled with Lot No. HKU124 that's produced from farm-grown Espadin and wild Cirial agave.  The spirit is an unaged mezcal or joven where a campfire smoke character is prevalent on the nose but partially gives way to pine, white pepper, and vanilla.  As for a cocktail, the Killer Bee is a good option where the honey and lemon dampen the smoke and allow a little floral character to arise.

Killer Bee

• 1 1⁄2 ounces honey
• 2 ounces mezcal, such as Del Maguey Vida brand
• 1 1⁄2 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 lemon)

Del Maguey Minero Single Village Santa Catarina Minas Mezcal

Recently I had dinner had my favorite Vienna restaurant, Alegria, and for the first time, skipped the tequila and sampled some Mezcal. This spirit is the original Mexican spirit, first distilled by the conquistadors after they ran out of rum. They noticed that the indigenous population drinking pulque, a fermented beverage from the maguey agave plant. Distillation soon commenced and today it is distilled throughout Mexico - although its epicenter is Oaxaca. 

In the past, I had avoided mezcal primarily because I had only tasted lower end versions (with the worm) which didn't compare favorably to Mezcal's tequila offspring. No longer - particularly after a round of Del Maguey (ma–gay) Minero Single Village Santa Catarina Minas Mezcal ($70).  This is as  tasty as any fine 100% blue agave Tequila,  with a mango nose and flavor followed by an enticing shot of motor oil - think rich and smooth. This mezcal is completely organic, not because they strive to reach that certification, but because that's how they've been producing the spirit for centuries. This particularly brand comes from the village of Santa Catarina Minas and palenqueros, Florencio Carlos Sarmiento and his sons Florencio Carlos Vasquez and Luis Carlos Vasquez. They pound the roasted agave by hand and then distill the fermented pulp in a clay still with bamboo tubing rather than a copper still and tubing. Now that's cool. And major kudos to Del Maguey for singling out individual family palenqueros in small villages in every mezcal in their collection. I'll keep looking for the green bottle.