Yuu Baal Mezcal Tepeztate

Yuu Baal Tepeztate is built on one of the most distinctive and scarce wild agaves, Agave marmorata, which can take up to 35 years to reach maturity, leaving the species genuinely threatened. This joven is made by maestro Isaias Martinez Juan in San Juan del Rio, Oaxaca, and its name pairs the Zapotec words for earth and fire, the two elements behind the spirit.

The long grown agave gives an intensely herbal, vegetal character true to the species. Aromas run to sweet herbs of wild plants and cooked flowers, grape skin, pepper and wood smoke, while the palate brings agave, herbs, salt and green olive, a syrupy maple sweetness, fresh capsicum reminiscent of salmiana, and a minty finish. Pit roasted in the artesanal tradition and bottled unaged at 40% to keep the rare agave front and centre.