Mezcal, Ponche de Frutas

• Mezcal produced by Rey Campero in Candelaria Yegolé, Zoquitlán, Oaxaca
• Maestro Mezcalero Vicente Sánchez Parada
• Made from 100% Espadn (A. angustifolia)
• Cooked in a traditional earthern pit oven
• Milled using a traditional stone tahona
• Open-air spontaneous fermentation in pine and cypress wood vats (tinas)
• Distilled twice using copper pot stills
• Guava, apple, raisin and canela (cinnamon bark) added to the still on the second pass
• Distilled June 2024
• 51% ABV

Ponche (punch) is a holiday tradition across numerous communities in Mexico and beyond, and the term can refer variously to a distillate, a liqueur, or a mixed beverage made with fruits and spices in anticipation of the season’s festivities. In Oaxaca, this “Fruit Punch” takes the form of distilled alcohol—mezcal made with the addition of sweet fruits and spices on a second pass through the still.

It’s been more than half a decade since we saw a batch of Ponche de Frutas from the Sánchez Parada family, and while their previous batches were released under the Herencia de Sánchez label, they’ve now brought these unique productions under the family’s revered Rey Campero umbrella. This year’s release is truly something special, with rich sweet fruits that gush and burst all over the palate of this unique mezcal!

Tasting Notes

While the tradition of “pechuga” mezcales continues to gain commercial popularity in the US, it has also quietly become associated with all kinds of agave distillates that include an added ingredient—despite many of those having long traditions of their own. That shorthand, while convenient for marketing to US consumers, can do a disservice to the cultural heritage that serves as both the root of mezcal and its allure.

With this new limited release, maestro mezcalero Vicente Sánchez Parada and his family have gone in precisely the opposite direction of this trend. Ponche (punch) is a holiday tradition across numerous communities in Mexico and beyond, and the term can refer variously to a distillate, a liqueur, or a mixed beverage made with fruits and spices in anticipation of the season’s festivities. In Oaxaca, this “Fruit Punch” takes the form of distilled alcohol—mezcal made with the addition of sweet fruits and spices on a second pass through the still.

To make their Ponche, Vicente distills the batch twice, adding guava, apple, raisin, and cinnamon to the still on the second pass. Produced with specific intention, well in advance of the holiday season, Rey Campero Ponche de Frutas was distilled in June of 2024 then rested in glass for approximately a year before bottling.

It’s been more than half a decade since we saw a batch of Ponche de Frutas from the Sánchez Parada family, and while their previous batches were released under the Herencia de Sánchez label, they’ve now brought these unique productions under the family’s revered Rey Campero umbrella. This year’s release is truly something special, with rich sweet fruits that gush and burst all over the palate of this unique mezcal!