Del Maguey San Jose Rio Minas Single Village Mezcal (750ml)
Oaxaca,
MEXICO
$199. 00
Bottle
$2388.00 Dozen
ABV: 50%
This mezcal is part of Del Maguey’s 'Vino de Mezcal' series which features limited production mezcals, hand-selected by founder, Ron Cooper.
The San Jose Rio Minas is also the perfect example of the dictum: "You don’t find mezcal. Mezcal finds you.” Cooper recounts this charming anecdote: "We met the distiller, Don Roberto going down a canyon lush with wild agaves in the middle of nowhere. He was out deer hunting with some friends many hours on foot from their village. Four hours back on our rocky, dirt road we were told about the village of Rio Minas but looking at a map it was obvious that it was a three hour detour on an even worse road, so we passed. Now four hours later we ran into this group of hunters all armed with rifles. We asked if they knew of the mezcal of Rio Minas and Don Roberto laughed. He motioned to a buddy and the guy passed a half-liter plastic water bottle with an incredible mezcal inside made by the man standing in front of us!" The 'chance' discovery was bottled by Del Maguey and went on to be a finalist at the 2019 Ultimate Spirits Challenge. Made from 8-10 year old Espadin & Arroqueño agaves sourced from the Mixteca Alta, the pinas were milled by hand with mallets in a canoa, then fermented for 10-15 days before being distilled in a 60 litre galvanised steel tub. Described as having a "bright sweet nose of papaya and ripe peaches giving way to a lightly sweet and very floral palate, it ends with pepper notes and a herbal component of Hoja Santa and eucalyptus giving it a refreshing finish. 50% Alc./Vol. Other reviews... This is a very fruit-driven style of mezcal; pineapples jump out of the glass and right into your nose. White flowers, sheet rock, white pepper, and candied orange accented with the savoriness of smoked meats follow. These aromas follow suit on the palate along with melon, beeswax, and pine. This is a very lush and chewy mezcal. 93 points - distiller.com 96 points - Ultimate Spirits Challenge 2019
The San Jose Rio Minas is also the perfect example of the dictum: "You don’t find mezcal. Mezcal finds you.” Cooper recounts this charming anecdote: "We met the distiller, Don Roberto going down a canyon lush with wild agaves in the middle of nowhere. He was out deer hunting with some friends many hours on foot from their village. Four hours back on our rocky, dirt road we were told about the village of Rio Minas but looking at a map it was obvious that it was a three hour detour on an even worse road, so we passed. Now four hours later we ran into this group of hunters all armed with rifles. We asked if they knew of the mezcal of Rio Minas and Don Roberto laughed. He motioned to a buddy and the guy passed a half-liter plastic water bottle with an incredible mezcal inside made by the man standing in front of us!" The 'chance' discovery was bottled by Del Maguey and went on to be a finalist at the 2019 Ultimate Spirits Challenge. Made from 8-10 year old Espadin & Arroqueño agaves sourced from the Mixteca Alta, the pinas were milled by hand with mallets in a canoa, then fermented for 10-15 days before being distilled in a 60 litre galvanised steel tub. Described as having a "bright sweet nose of papaya and ripe peaches giving way to a lightly sweet and very floral palate, it ends with pepper notes and a herbal component of Hoja Santa and eucalyptus giving it a refreshing finish. 50% Alc./Vol. Other reviews... This is a very fruit-driven style of mezcal; pineapples jump out of the glass and right into your nose. White flowers, sheet rock, white pepper, and candied orange accented with the savoriness of smoked meats follow. These aromas follow suit on the palate along with melon, beeswax, and pine. This is a very lush and chewy mezcal. 93 points - distiller.com 96 points - Ultimate Spirits Challenge 2019