
The nose of the mezcal reaches me, its earhty…and smoky…but not overwelmingly so – in a pleasant way that invites you to take a sip. Mezcal (mes-kal) generally refers to all agave-based distilled liquors that are not tequila. Tequila is made only from the blue agave plant and usually produced in the town Tequila and its surroundings of Jalisco.
Mezcals are made from 100% agave while tequilas must be produced from a minimum of 51% agave and there are several different varietes of agave used each producing a different flavor of mezcal. Espadín agave is used in the making of about 90% of the mezcal.
The word mezcal means “cooked maguey” and comes from Nahuatl, one of the ancient languages of Mexico. The word maguey (used to represent the pre-Columbian “tree of wonders”) is synonymous with agave which contrary to many beliefs isn´t a cactus but a relative to the Lily and Amaryllis. The distillation process was brought to Mexico by the conquistadores.
There are several types of mezcal, and there is a broad range of quality in terms of smoothness, flavor nuances and smokiness. For example there is the tobala mezcal which is made from the heart of tobala maguey that grows wild and is only distilled in earternware pots, (makes about 5% of the mezcal production) the mezcal with a worm, mezcal with no additives except a particular herb or fruit zest or more herbaceous products.
Then there is mezcal de pechuga which is an artisanal product only produced in a few mountain villages in the State of Oaxaca.
Its a very special kind of mezcal - finished mezcal is distilled a third time with a chicken breast along with certain fruits and other ingreidents, made by hanging a raw chicken breast in the still or over the top of the vat during production, imparting a subtle flavor nuance in the spirit as well as a bit of body created by the vaporized fat.
The still is then closed and the distilling process proceeds over a few weeks. When complete and the still is opened, there´s nothing left of the chicken breast except the bones. The finished product is said to taste fruity and floral without any chicken taste.
In this video Ron Cooper from Del Maguey explains the myths and the seven factors that affects the quality and flavor of the mezcal. You should really watch this video if you like mezcal, its very interesting.
In short, those seven factors are the following:
Plant Species – there are about a dozen maguey plants that produces good mezcal, so the plant variety is important as each one gives different flavours.
Altitude – its here the airborne microbes plays their role and at every 300 feet up (100m) its different species of microbes. These airborne microbes affects the fermenting. In commercial tequila and mezcal production chemicals are used but in the production of Del Maguey they wait between 4-30 days to let the airborne microbes start the fermenting. That`s a handcrafted spirit!
The soil – Different soils are used, and soil definetily adds a flavour component. Del Maguey uses a soil type that is called tierra amaria. Its a well drained granite-rich soil thus letting the water drain off fast which is very important as water from the soil is not good for the maguey as water through the roots and up in the plant makes it bitter. Instead the plants opens up its poores in the night and absorbs moisture.
Wood – the kind of wood that is used to heat the rocks that roast the hearts on gives off different flavours.
Water – the water of the village also has a flavour effect and the water is used after the hearts are ground and everything is placed in tanks or vats. Different village waters affects the flavours.
The hand of the maker – This is that magic personal touch that every producer of mezcal adds to the product and its possible to by blind tasting tell which village and which specific producer has made a certain mezcal.
Time – is one of the most important factors in a good mezcal – as mezcal is a real slow-food product – this is how flavour is made with love.
I`m very fond of mezcal, and i like how it mixes in cocktails imparting a smoky flavour, like a scotch – and mezcal marries so well with fresh fruit flavours – like tequila do.
So what to drink?
Somehow i got the idea to try the drink (Massive Sausage Attack) that i made for the “Bad Name” TDN with mezcal and change and re-name it. The result is a fresh, fruity, herbal and smoky cocktail.
EARTH, HERBS AND SMOKE

1.5oz mezcal
0,5oz fresh lime
0.5 oz pink grapefruit juice
0.5 oz agave syrup
1 barspoon green chartreuse
Top with Ting or other grapefruit soda.
For a nice variation top with green cactus juice.
Shake with ice, strain and serve in a sugar coated old fashioned glass with large chunks of ice.
Garnish with lime.
This drink turned out really good, at least to my fruit-loving taste buds. The mezcal and chartreuse has a herbal-earthy and pleasantly smoky love-affair.The fresh pink grapfruit and lime sings their praises. Its definetily a summer drink, the hotter the summer the better is this drink, well chilled with lots of ice.