Del Maguey San Pablo Ameyaltepec Mezcal

Del Maguey San Pablo Ameyaltepec is a limited single village mezcal from a semitropical valley in Puebla, a region that gained its mezcal denomination only recently so its makers can now call the spirit mezcal legally. It is made from Papalote, the local name for Agave cupreata, by maestro Aurelio Gonzalez Tobon. Del Maguey was founded in 1995 by artist Ron Cooper and built the single village model, naming each release for the town where it is made.
The cupreata plants, harvested at roughly twelve to eighteen years, are roasted in an earthen underground horno, fermented in the open air with native yeast and distilled in the traditional way. The result is strongly floral, with spicy clove and lilac wrapped around sweet tropical fruit, then a palate of crisp citrus that turns creamy, round and soft, almost like fresh queso de cabra. It closes with a notable mineral length, bottled at 47%.