El Distilado Rum – Wild Fermented Oaxaca

El Distilado makes this rum in Oaxaca, Mexico, from fresh-pressed sugar-cane juice with a wild, spontaneous fermentation, putting it in the agricole-style and clairin family rather than the molasses mainstream, though it cannot use the protected French-island term. The wild ferment is central to its unusual character.

The nose is floral and fresh, full of cut flowers, pear and sugar-cane, with a Calvados-like quality some drinkers note, while the palate keeps the flowers and pear before drifting into smoke, yeast and pepper. The finish stays vegetal and smoky. Bottled at 41.5% and unaged, it carries a distinctive intensity for its strength, a terroir-driven, mezcal-adjacent take on cane spirit that will appeal to drinkers who chase the wilder, more artisanal end of the rum world.