Los Siete Misterios Mezcal Tobala 2017 – Ancestral Mezcal

Los Siete Misterios Tobalá is an ancestral mezcal made from wild Tobalá, the small high mountain Agave potatorum that yields very little per plant, so batches stay tiny. The ancestral class is the most hands on tier of mezcal, and here it means the agave is milled entirely by hand and the spirit is distilled in clay pots rather than copper, the practice that gives the brothers Mestre's wild agave line its character.

Clay pot distillation lends a soft, mineral, almost wet clay texture that suits Tobalá's delicate, floral leaning nature. The nose shows earthy minerals, clay, agave and citrus, while the palate opens into chilli chocolate, orange peel, mineral smoke, dried flowers, ground cinnamon and nutmeg. Bottled undiluted at 47.3% from this 2017 lot, it is best taken neat to let the wild agave and the barro still speak.