Mezcal, Tepeztate, '9th Floor Skurnik Selection - Rio Seco'

• Mezcal produced at Palenque Río Seco in Santa María Zoquitlán, Oaxaca
• Maestro Mezcalero Regulo Martinez Parada
• Distilled from 100% Tepeztate (Agave marmorata)
• Cooked in a stone-lined conical earthen pit oven
• Crushed using a traditional stone mill (tahona)
• Open-air fermented in pine wooden tanks (tinas)
• Distilled twice using traditional copper pot stills
• Distilled in 2020; 120 bottles made
• Parsnip, snap peas, shishito peppers, Meyer lemon, plum sauce, and McDonald’s BBQ on the nose are followed by waves of goji berry, jasmine, daikon, juniper, dark apple cider, pear skin, galangal, and coriander on the palate
• 48% ABV

“Following closely on the heels of our last Skurnik Selection exclusive bottling of Tepeztate from El Jolgorio, we are excited to share another truly unique batch, in its entirety, of this rare species! 

“The Río Seco palenque is situated in a small village within the Zoquitlán municipality, with a population of just over 400. The region is lower down in the valley of Oaxaca’s Central Valles, where the environment is subtropical, yet arid and dry. The mezcales made in this area by various branches of the storied Parada family straddle a consistent and compelling balance of earthy, vegetal depth and bright, fruit-forward versatility. Regulo’s work, in particular, tends to carry a garden-fresh, rooty quality; think of the first carrots after a frost—sweet and with traces of soil in their folds. His Agave karwinskii batches, embracing that profile, have long been a cult favorite among our team. But we’d never had a chance to try his Agave marmorata before. 

“A small batch of just 120 bottles, this Tepeztate is a mind-bender. The nose is laced with parsnip and sugar snap peas, shishito peppers and Meyer lemon, plum sauce and a whiff of drive-through BBQ sauce (in the best way). The palate is a joyous shock, with waves of goji berry, jasmine, daikon, juniper, dark apple cider, pear skin, galangal, and coriander, with the memory of that roadside attraction still lingering in the finish. A whirlwind, it carries many of the familiar characteristics of the Tepeztate variety, but entirely filtered through a completely different lens. As the species becomes scarcer in Oaxacan agriculture, it’s thrilling to find examples which both satisfy classic expectations and simultaneously invert them, turning flavor on its head so to speak. This one’s a keeper—it will be truly fascinating to watch this batch evolve in glass for years to come!” —Justin Lane Briggs, Skurnik Spirits Portfolio Manager, Mexico