Mescal in Mitla

Mezcal is the State drink of Oaxaca. Not quite as smooth, or as famous as Tequila, which is made a little farther east of here, but still very good. In moderation, of course. Mezcal is made from the heart of a specifi agave, not the same agave that produces sisal fibers. After lunch in Mitla last week, having passed at least a dozen fabricas de mezcal, mezcal manufacturers, we decided to stop at one. Our luck guided us to el Maguey Espadin, just outside of Mitla.

The mule was harnessed to the mill stone, walking in endless circles, while two men took turns raking the chopped hearts down to be crushed. Not too difficult for the men, but a heavy job for the mule when he was stopped and had to start again.







Hearts of agave, waiting to be coarsely chopped, and then crushed. The spikey leaves of the agave are ground and used for compost in the fields, nothing is wasted. The fields all around the valley, and up into the mountains, are being planted with the magic plant these days, taking advantage of exports to other states in Mexico, whose thirst for mezcal is pretty good.












The burned hearts are then put into big tanks for ferment for about several weeks, and the liquid is then cooked, and cooled. The entire process takes several months to complete. Then, the mezcal is stored in wooden barrels, like bourbon or wine and is aged. The younger the mezcal when bottled, the lower the quality and the lower the price.



















Our hostess, Rosi, I think she is the daughter of the owners. She lined up the bottles of mescal according to age, after the short tour and explanation of the process. She's not smiling in this photo, I just caught her off guard, she was laughing with us the entire time. We sampled, and sure enough, bought a few bottles. Rosi described the ages as: ninos, muchachos y adultos. Babies, young men, and adults.

What Rosi really wanted, though, was english lessons. Eshkie's spanish is the best of our little group, even though I understood most of what Rosi said. I told Rosi that I need spanish, and we agreed that we'd make a great intercambio team!

I'm glad we stopped at el Maguey Espadin. And yes, Stuart and I did buy a bottle.