REGION: Oaxaca

Gusto Histórico (meaning “historic taste”) is the new project from Marco Ochoa, co-founder of Mezcaloteca. Working with maestros mezcaleros all over Mexico, the project aims to bottle tiny batches of truly unique, heritage agave distillates: the flavors of tradition, of people, and of place.

In 2010, Sandra Ortíz Brena co-founded the legendary In Sítu Mezcalería in Oaxaca City; the bar and tasting room has since achieved world renown. Sandra’s new label, Mezcasiarca, aims to share some of the finest bottles from that collection with an international audience.

La Medida is a collaborative brand created by enigmatic mezcalero Celso Luis Santiago and Julián Vidal Gómez Rodríguez, one of the unsung legends of Oaxacan mezcal. Alongside his son, Julián works with several highly regarded mezcaleros to showcase wild and cultivated single-varietal bottlings.

Founded in 2009, Cuish was the first modern mezcaleria in Oaxaca City, dedicated to promoting and protecting traditional mezcales. Production choices are left entirely to the maestros and the local traditions in which they work; each batch is a snapshot of the people and place from which it comes.

Led by Gonzalo Martinez, Macurichos employs both modern Artesanal techniques and traditional Ancestral methods, including clay pot stills. Cultivating diverse fields of agave from seed, Gonzalo is dedicated to both the cultural tradition and the agricultural heritage of agave in Santiago Matatlán.