ATOASTz^SPIRIT /REVOLUTIONARIES, GROWN * WILD MOUNTAINS,, MEXICO
—the oldest spirit in North America, with the most maligned reputation—is on the verge of becoming the new sophisticated sipper in your local bar. As Juan Beckmann Sr, president of Jose Cuervo tequila, reportedly told friends at a dinner in Mexico last year, "Mezcal is the future." Country singer Toby Keith just launched a brand, Wild Shot. One of Coca-Cola's bottling partners is spending about $55 million on a new mezcal distillery. For ages, the fine mezcals distilled in the mountains of Oaxaca, Mexico, never left the villages where they were made. For the
first time, entrepreneurs are bringing these high-quality mezcals to the States. Fueled by shots and wanderlust, we headed to sunbaked Oaxaca with Ron Cooper, owner of Del Maguey, the first international exporter of single-village mezcals (launched 16 years ago). Our goal: to see how they are distilled and sip them with the artisans who make them at high altitudes according to centuries-old traditions. As we headed through rustic barrios and wild vistas, villagers eyed us. We were gringos in a white Cherokee, about as inconspicuous as Mormon missionaries in Mecca. Did we find what we were hunting for? And then some. For the full story of our adventures see playboy.com/mezcal. Meanwhile, here's a 101 with our favorite bottles available in the States.
MEZCALS^OAXACA
FINE LIQUORS LIKE THESE SHOULD
be sipped straight or on the rocks. From left: Mijes ioven ($57; see below for an
explanation of terms). Heaps of smoke balanced with bitter orange and vanilla. You can smell a shot from across the room. Del Maguey Minero single-village mezcal ($70): From mountain agave grown at 5,500 feet in the village of Minero, this is an outstanding joven. Hints of smoke, citrus and earth. Ilegal Mezcal anejo ($120): The
name is a gimmick, the liquor is not. Surprisingly light-bodied for a spirit aged for one year. Tobacco and vanilla notes burst
on the tongue, with a long, easy finish. Los Nahuales reposado ($65): Imagine a mezcal mellowed like a young cognac. Los Amantes ("The Lovers") joven ($50): Hearty structure, delicate flavor, sweet finish. Scorpion five-year-old ahejo ($180): It's like drinking gold velvet. Enjoy with a bold cigar. Yep, that's a real scorpion in there.
^JUICE
TO BE DEEMED MEZCAL, A LIQUOR must be made from one of a number of different varieties of a plant called maguey (or agave). Tequila can be made only of blue agave. The mez-calero (mezcal maker) takes the pina, the heart of the agave
plant, and buries it underground, clambake style, with layers of embers for three days to a month, depending on his taste. (Tequila, in contrast, is
made of steamed agave.) The roasted agave is crushed and left to ferment with water in large casks. Once the fermentation is complete, the mash is fed in small batches into a pot still. Oftentimes the liquor is distilled twice for purity. It's bottled clear
and unaged (joven, or "young"), aged for two to 11 months in charred oak barrels {reposado. or "rested") or for a year or longer (ahejo, or "old").
"A GREAT THUNDERBOLT STRUCK A MAGUEY W TORE OUT tu PLANT'S HEART, SETTING #¦ ALIGHT. ASTONISHED, MEN SAW ^ AROMATIC NECTAR APPEARING DEEP INSIDE. THEY DRANK ^WITH FEAR *a REVERENCE, ACCEPTING ^w^GIPT fROM tu GODS."
