Del Maguey VIDA Clasico Mezcal

Del Maguey VIDA Clasico is the Espadín expression in Del Maguey's VIDA range, the house that defined single village mezcal under founder Ron Cooper. At 42% it carries a little more turn than its VIDA Puebla sibling, which the producer frames as more expression and more smoke, and it has become one of the most reached for mezcals behind the bar in the United States.
The agave is roasted in an underground pit, which is where the smoke comes from rather than any peat, then wild fermented and distilled in small copper stills in the Oaxacan tradition. The nose runs to citrus and sweet smoke, while the palate is round and easy with a notable note of tar holding the roasted agave together. It drinks well on its own and mixes cleanly, the proof giving it just enough grip.