You can find mezcal at every bar, but for the most interesting and extensive selections with a generous helping of education, you want to head to one of the following mezcalerias, starting with our favorites.
El Cortijo – Brothers Juan Carlos and Raul man the bar 6 nights a week. Old photographs of their grandparents/founders look out from behind the bar at a modern mural by a Oaxacan artist. Tin crucifixes and hearts round out the simple decoration. The brothers come from the family that has bottled El Cortijo Mezcal since 1951. This bar only opened about a year ago as the big city outpost of their Matatlan distillery. 10 seats line the rustic wood bar, all within easy earshot of the bartender. If it’s your first time, start with the degustation (one of the more reasonable at 120 pesos or $10 USD) which will be tailored to your tastes. There are about 15 El Cortijo varieties on the brief menu plus about 15 more from other chosen distilleries. The brothers are both fantastic at directing you to your next favorite mezcal which is made easier by their high-quality products. It’s the kind of place where mezcal gets passed around to share and a person brings cheese from their hometown to taste. This is our favorite mezcal destination and our substitute for Acacia while we’re in Oaxaca.
La Mezcaloteca – The most serious (in a good way) mezcaleria in Oaxaca. This bar requires reservations – at least until the bartender remembers you. They do not offer oranges, worm salt, or aged varieties. They do offer a high-end mezcal tasting experience – without the prices to match. Their tasting is 150 pesos ($11 USD) but you get 3 very generous pours. The bartenders share interesting details about the process, flavor, and history of each of their mezcals such as the age the maestro started distilling (13 in some cases) and that one maestro always aims for 51% alcohol content because he likes them strong. We learned here to shake bottles of mezcal to test the alcohol content by the size of the bubbles – very useful when buying out of jugs in the countryside. We think we’ve tried all of their single agave varieties from the state of Oaxaca (they don’t have a menu) plus some blends and external varieties. We would be willing to bring any of the bottles home, but we are limited in space. This is another must-visit spot in Oaxaca. If El Cortijo didn’t exist, we’d be here most nights.
The runner-ups:
In Situ – They may have top-notch Mezcal here but their storefront next to a very loud street makes it difficult to hear well or enjoy sipping. They do have over 70 different types of Mezcal represented from very smaller distillers that they bottle under their own label. If there’s an esoteric type of agave or method that you want to sample (like the rustic Penca Verde), In Situ will inevitably have it available.
Cuish – 6 wooden stools are stacked against the bar of this distillery’s city outpost. The Mezcal is decent but a bit on the rough side. The price is cheap, and you get to watch people get frisked on their way to the bar upstairs.
Los Amantes – Their Tobala (the most popular of the wild agaves) is great and very expensive. The tasting room is a glorified store-front, so this isn’t a place to linger long. They only have a few Mezcals, but they are the only ones with availability in the US. If you can find them, they will be a good addition to your home bar if you can afford them.
If you don’t know what the hell mezcal, agave, and maguey are, we will be following up with more information about our current obsession.
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