Heritage Mezcal

La totalidad de México me emociona y me entusiasma, pero últimamente, Guadalajara trae a mi corazón latiendo fuerte: sus calles, sus museos, la gran oferta de destilados, los infinitos remedios para la cruda. Y específicamente, uno de los lugares que creo representan la gran imaginación tapatía, es Mecenas. Hace ya unos meses tuve la oportunidad de sentarme con Santos (reconocido como El Bartender Promesa por MXBEST y uno de los fundadores de este bar), a compartir y contarnos sobre tragos y destilados. Espero disfruten esta conversación y que se den una vuelta para probar su larga oferta de menjurges deliciosos.

In this conversation with my dear friend Fabio Raya, we explore many of the ideas we were exposed to at the "VI Simposio Internacional de Agave". This episode includes everything from using agave as livestock silage to developing a comprehensive strategy for using 2 million hectares of Mexican arid land—a full labyrinth. Big shout-out to Fernanda Arrillaga, from Casa Sotol, for hosting us and letting us record at her beautiful house in Saltillo. And huge thanks to Alan and the whole team at Pechotierra for taking us to Jorge Luis Torres Casas vinata to get a proper education on Nuevo León spirits and for allowing us to catch the lovely picture featured in this episode. Cheers y feliz día de muertos y todos santos.

Wine has a long history in Mexico, with its introduction arguably dating back to the 16th century. However, it was never massively consumed in the same manner as pulque, beer, or vino de mezcal. There are even annecdotes about communion wine was spiked with coconut spirits (vino de coco) to give it some proper potency. But our relationship with grapes has been changing in recent years. The wines from Baja California have gained a consistent following, and new regions all around Mexico have been exploring the grape varietals and the wine styles that can better suit them. In this episode with @noah.tovares , founder of @vinoschidos.mx, we talked wine for a full hour, hopefully enticing you to start drinking and enjoying Mexican grapes. Saludcita!

Este es el primer episodio que se graba en español y estoy tremendamente orgulloso de eso. Para esta nueva realidad paralela bilingüe del podcast, quise empezar con un episodio que resolvió muchas de las dudas que llevaba cargando desde hace tiempo. El sotol, o los sotoles, o los dasylirion, para ser más específico, son algo que me emociona y me intimida. No solamente los sabores me son difíciles de descifrar, sino todo lo que los rodea. Desde su identidad genética  hasta las muchas maneras de procesarlo. Por suerte  tuve la oportunidad de entrevistar a Samuel Ruíz, director de operaciones en Casa Endémica y probablemente una de las personas que mejor entiende a esta planta que se llama sotol en el norte pero que se toma como cucharilla en el sur. Este episodio fue grabado en las instalaciones de Casa Endémica en Zapopán, Jalisco. La música, la ingeniería de audio, y los videos que ahora pueden encontrar en Youtube, están a cargo de Roy Sierra. Tomen sotol y bailen pegadito. Bonito fin de semana.

There are so many things that you could do with your life. You could dedicate decades to science, get into politics, and figure out how to reach world peace, and then there are flavors and pleasures. Which seems less important, a luxury amongst needs. Yet, there are companies paying millions of dollars to develop and protect specific formulations. People go crazy about securing a reservation at the most celebrated restaurants in the world, and many of our memories are forever linked to particular foods and drinks. But who are these people choosing and finding the flavours that we might celebrate in a few decades? Where and what are they looking for? A few weeks ago, I met Max at Grieta, a coffee bar, that is also a congal, if you know what that means. We started talking about coffee, cacao, and obviously alcohol. Very quickly, it was clear to me that he is one of those people searching for what we may call delicious in the near future., Please welcome Max Brooker, and his intense love for motorcycles and the Mexican mountain ranges.