Mezcal
Also known as: mescal
In short
Mezcal is Mexico's agave spirit in the widest sense: distilled from many agave varieties, mostly in Oaxaca, traditionally with earth ovens and smoke. We explain the difference to tequila and why the smoky note is not a flaw.
In depth
What is mezcal?
Mezcal is an agave spirit from Mexico and may be distilled from many agave varieties, while tequila comes only from the blue Weber agave. You know the matching line from our tequila entry: roughly speaking, tequila is a kind of mezcal, but by far not every mezcal is a tequila. The stronghold is Oaxaca, but mezcal is also produced in Durango and other states.
Craft with smoke
Traditionally, the agave hearts are baked in earth ovens, and exactly that gives the smoky notes mezcal stands for. After that they are shredded, fermented and often distilled in small distilleries, the palenques. The most important agave is called espadín.
Young or from the cask
Like tequila, mezcal knows age categories: reposado and añejo appear on the bottle when it rested in wood, while the young joven stands for the pure agave character.
And the worm?
The worm in the bottle counts as marketing, not as a sign of quality, as you already know from our tequila entry. Good mezcal needs no proof in the bottle.
At our lounge
Neat or in a drink: ask our team for a mezcal that fits your taste.