It feels almost contradictory to describe a spirit that has existed for at least 500 years as "trendy," but mezcal’s global rise to popularity certainly indicates that bartenders and consumers alike are more enthusiastic about Mexico’s smoky personality than ever before. Between 2007 and 2011, mezcal sales grew by nearly 48 percent according to Mexican government data, an astounding increase for a spirit that exhibits some of the world's most aggressive and, at times, alienating flavors. In addition to its iconic smokey identity, mezcals can exhibit extreme flavors which some describe as bitter, cheesy or even sour. Often much higher in proof than everyday tequila, mezcal isn’t for everyone, but at the moment many are curious to taste Mexico’s older and more traditional agave spirit. And amid intrigue, mezcal producers are now reaching further into their cultural vaults and bottling new types of mezcal never before sold to anyone other than close friends in their local Mexican communities.



At its core, mezcal is simply a spirit distilled from the agave plant. Many agave varietals grow throughout Mexico, and each plant or maguey takes on the terroir of the microclimate in which it grows, impacting a mezcal's flavor. The most famous of Mexico’s many agave spirits is tequila, which, for certification purposes, is required to be produced in one of five states: Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Nayarit or Tamaulipas. Tequila also must be distilled from Blue Agave, a single agave species among the estimated two hundred that exist in Mexico. However, an often overlooked difference between mezcal and tequila is that, unlike tequila, mezcal may be produced from any agave species, resulting in a wide array of flavor diversity. Mezcal’s Appellation of Origin is also much larger than tequila’s—including the states of Oaxaca, Guerrero, Zacatecas, Guanajuato, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Durango and Michoacán—however, for centuries mezcal has been made in another 12 states despite not being recognized by the Mexican government for bureaucratic and political reasons. Instead, those mezcals are labeled as "agave-distilled spirits" and are rarely sold outside the country.

Making Mezcal

To produce a bottle of booze, the process for both tequila and mezcal is similar. First, a farmer harvests the soft center fruit, or piña, of the maguey by shaving off the plant’s leaves and separating it from the rootstock below. This process kills the plant which, depending on the species, took anywhere from eight to over twenty years to mature. In today’s international mezcal market, rare and wild varietals, such as Tepextate, which has even been known to take 35 years to reach maturity, may even sell for over $150 a bottle. After harvesting, the piña is then roasted, before juice is extracted, fermented and distilled. With tequila, the roasting process is generally done in brick ovens. However, the art of mezcal traditionally involves roasting the piñas below ground with burning wood and hot stones, resulting in a smokey flavor that primarily distinguishes mezcal from tequila.

At the U.S. table, mezcal’s eccentric and beloved father is Ron Cooper, a man who paved the way for today’s agave enthusiasm in the early 90s by bringing in traditional mezcals from small families in Oaxaca under his label Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal. Previously, mezcals sold in the U.S. were simply industrial products dustily positioned as gimmicky alternatives to tequila on the occasional liquor store shelf.

Cooper, who is arguably even more famous for his work as a Southwestern artist, learned about mezcal during a trip along the Pan American highway in 1970. Over the next twenty years, he studied mezcal and forged relationships with the best producers before finally launching his own brand in 1990. Had anyone else introduced mezcal to the United States, today’s excitement for traditional mezcal likely would have never existed. Cooper’s passion for art inspired him to distinguish the mezcalero and his family as artists of the agave. Understanding traditional mezcal production as the efforts of a "single village" is a principle characteristic of today’s most respected mezcals—Del Maguey or not—and has redefined this ancient product as a viable source of income for many Mexican families.

Varietals

For the past two decades, Del Maguey’s core expressions have come from four Oaxacan villages, showcasing their individual processes and flavor profiles. These are further reflected by a distinct label for each—Chichicapa, Minero, San Luis del Rio, and Santo Domingo Albarradas. However, one common characteristic among the core four is the varietal of agave distilled: Espadin. Like tequila’s Blue Agave, Espadin has been easily cultivated and widely available in Mexico for decades. Compared to other species, Espadin is medium in size, with sword-like leaves that extend outward from the agave’s piña. While each agave varietal offers unique flavors and characteristics, Espadin sits firmly in the center of the flavor spectrum showing a mild sweetness and modest herbal and citrus flavors. Because of its widespread availability, Espadin accounts for a vast majority of all mezcal production in Mexico, and for the past two decades, with a few exceptions, every bottle sold in the U.S. was Espadin-based. Until recently, however, Espadin dominance has only told part of the mezcal story, and other species have always sat in the shadows waiting for their day in the sun (or not—some agaves only grow in the shade).

In today’s international mezcal market, rare and wild varietals, such as Tepextate, which has even been known to take 35 years to reach maturity, may even sell for over $150 a bottle.

Tobala—a small agave varietal that’s significantly sweeter than the Espadin species, often showing far more delicate flavors that range from floral to spiced—was the first non-Espadin agave to make an impact in the United State, and for years Tobala has existed as a sort of luxury mark of a small number of mezcal brands, including Del Maguey, who, again, was the first to bring this varietal to the United States in 1996. It is an excellent example of how widely other agave plants can vary when compared to Espadin. Unlike Espadin, Tobala has broad spade-like leaves, and despite their significantly smaller size, they may take up to twice as long to reach maturity. The rarity of Tobala when compared to Espadin’s enormous population and the smaller yield makes sourcing and producing Tobala-based mezcals far more challenging. Many other agave species are just as rare and may even yield less mezcal, but Del Maguey’s enthusiasm for their Tobala and the company's ability to accurately sell it above the $100 per bottle mark inspired many other brands to seek producers who could make both Espadin and Tobala expressions. As a result, the mezcal category slowly began to show a small glimpse into its vast diversity, and over the next decade other brands released Espadin and Tobala-based mezcals as well.

Comparing Tobala expressions from different producers takes us further down the rabbit hole. Del Maguey’s Tobala, sourced from an anonymous producer high in a rocky mountain region, is made from locally harvested plants that are exposed to far more rainfall, humidity and colder temperatures than those of Mezcal Vago’s. Mezcal Vago, a family owned and operated brand, is a relative newcomer to the U.S. market, but their mezcals come from two mezcaleros backed by centuries of tradition. Vago’s Tobalá en Barro, which translates as "Tobala in Clay" because of the clay stills in which it is produced, is made by Tio Rey, the cheeriest mezcalero in Sola de Vega, Oaxaca, a town with a generations-old Tobala legacy. Tio Rey’s Tobalas are some of the largest in Mexico—almost twice the size of Del Maguey’s. They grow in a warm, fertile valley alongside many other crops. The terroir, or impact of the region in which raw material is sourced for production, is evident between these two spirits. While both demonstrates flavors akin to Tobala, Del Maguey’s is sweeter and fruitier; Mezcal Vago’s is drier and more herbal.

But Tobala is just the beginning of today’s growing mezcal story. Misty Kalkofen, director of Del Maguey’s relatively new "Vino de Mezcal" line, believes mezcal’s vastness is a product of "the amazing biodiversity of the agave combined with the aspects of human and biological terroir." In addition to Espadin and Tobala-based mezcals, Del Maguey, Mezcal Vago and many others brands are now exporting mezcals that highlight this biodiversity, often with varietals that never reached the U.S. until less than two years ago. Del Maguey’s "Vino de Mezcal" line, which is extremely limited and showcases some of Oaxaca’s rare varietals, includes mezcals made from the species of Arroqueño, Tepextate, Papalome, Barril, Madrecuixe, and even the Blue Agave, traditionally used for tequila production. Under another label, these mezcals would easily sell for over a hundred dollars a bottle, but Del Maguey modestly prices them around $75 each.

Mezcal Vago also takes a modest approach at around the same price per bottle and currently offers mezcals produced from Coyote, Mexicano, Arroqueño, Cuixe, Tepeztate, and Sierra Negra. Each of these mezcals is extremely unique and demonstrates how varied in shape, size and flavor the agave can be. For example, Arroqueño mezcals can show intense citrus flavors and may even be described as tasting cheesy, while Papalome, a species similar to Tobala, is often floral and semi-sweet, but among the more delicately structured of all mezcals. Sierra Negra is so bold and intensely flavored that it is often used only in small quantities and mixed into batches of mezcals in which multiple agave varietals are roasted together and distilled into a single spirit. Meanwhile, Tepeztate’s flavors are uniquely herbal and distinct, matching the plant's sloppy, deep green leaves that overlap and chaotically grow outward from the piña.

Barril, Madrecuixe, and Cuixe are all sub-species of the same family: Agave Karwinskii (pictured above), the most physically distinct of all agave species. Most agave plants look like giant ground pineapples—the fruity piña of the plant resting centrally above the roots with leaves shooting outward from this core. The Karwinskii species actually grows a vertical stalk upon which a skinnier, vertical piña grows with smaller leaves thrust into the air around it.

Three years ago, only two species of mezcal were widely represented in the United States; today almost 30 varietals can be found in specialized bars across the country.

Unlike other agaves, in which only the piña is sourced, when Karwinskiis are cut for distillation, the stalk and the piña are harvested together. The stalk itself is composed of a firmer piña material so that it can support the weight of the piña above. Together, the ratio of soft piña fruit to external surface and leaf area is higher than it is with any other species. Usually, the piña’s internal flesh constitutes a greater percentage of the sourced material used for production. As a result, Karwinskii mezcals are often far more dry, herbal and tannic than any other species. Del Maguey’s upcoming release of a Tobasiche, another Karwinskii from San Luis del Rio, is an unlit tobacco bomb on the nose, earthy, with assertive smoke on the palate, and has sweet finish for days that lingers with flavors of sweet potato, vanilla, and subtle cinnamon until a distinct, drier agave flavor comes roaring back.

Agave, a Precious Commodity

While it is easy to get excited about having so much sudden access to these rare and exclusive mezcals, it is important to remember that agave is a unique and limited species. Three years ago, only two species of mezcal were widely represented in the United States; today almost 30 varietals can be found in specialized bars across the country.

Unlike Espadin, which is even beginning to experience its own shortage, many agaves can’t be cultivated and can even take up to three decades to reach maturity. Judah Kuper, co-founder of Mezcal Vago, points out that "We are at a dangerous crossroads because mezcal is just beginning to establish an international market with money pouring into projects from all over the globe. With the high prices wild and rare agave-made mezcals are fetching in today’s market, the forests are on the verge of being ravished." With little education and few resources, mezcaleros and their valuable plants make an easy target for branding sharks who often only share a tiny fraction of their profits and promise futures they have no intention of fulfilling. Is there a solution to this problem? Kuper argues that "as long as brands are putting more plants into the ground than they are taking out, things will be fine," but very few can demonstrate that this is a reality. Which is why it's vital to buy mezcal from brands that are family owned, like Mezcal Vago, or have a track record that is older than a couple of years, like Del Maguey.

As eager as enthusiasts may be to try the next Sonora Lechugilla or other rare mezcal, it is just as important that the species’ natural growth cycle be preserved. Kalkofen correctly identifies that this isn’t simply a responsibility of the mezcal industry: "In order for the category to be sustainable, there needs to be care from producers and consumers alike." Mexico’s countless generations of mezcal makers and their diverse culture are worth far more than any comparatively meager price their mezcal will fetch in a foreign market.

It is astonishing how many of today’s American mezcal brand owners and importers have never even met the mezcaleros who produce their spirits. Sadly, the pervasive nature of a competitive mentality seems to be the latest trend in the mezcal world. Mezcaleros with limited educations are "claimed" by importers and vaguely defended by makeshift contracts or verbal agreements. Small brands are desperate to find the next agave species yet to be imported so they can claim to be the first, and giant corporations like Bacardi, through distribution agreements, and even tequila giant, Jose Cuervo, are investing into the mezcal industry. Discussions about the sustainability of mezcal, however, seem to be less popular than ever.



Where’s Ron Cooper amid all of this? He’s probably doing the same things he’s been doing for decades— working on a new piece of art, pouring some young bartenders in Texas their first real taste of mezcal, or spending time with the families that produce Del Maguey’s mezcal in Oaxaca. After twenty years of relationships, there’s no shortage of agave or trust between them. And the future of mezcal’s popularity will likely be determined by whether today’s more recent players mimic Ron’s unwavering commitment to the spirit.