Mezcal Vago Elote

* My bottle: Lot A-20-EL-16. Nose: Sweet fruity aromas over a herby, vegetal base. Soft and slightly salty minerality. No smoke whatsoever. Palate: The arrival is soft and slow, mildly fruity, nutty and cereal, but this changes to a salty development. Lots of brine and white pepper but balanced by a cereal/fruity oiliness. The texture is arguably the best part of the palate. Finish: Medium. As the mouth absorbs the salt and pepper kick it moves to a pleasant vegetal sweetness in the aftertaste. Unlike most others who have reviewed this I don't find any specific corn flavour or aroma. However corn does have an influence here both on the mouthfeel (which is silky and slightly oily-thick) and by contributing sweetness to the palate that somewhat balances the salty profile. It's like a vegan pechuga, with corn instead of chicken breast, where the corn adds balance and roundness rather than overt aroma or flavour. It's a finely crafted and clean mezcal that lacks the flavour complexity of some others but substitutes a very pleasant texture. There's a balance between pepper and cool salt, with mild sweet fruit and cereal in the background. There's no smoke anywhere, which might be due to a narrow cut and minimal tempering, or maybe the roasting process (perhaps they don't use an earth oven?). Like most mezcal it develops more sweetness when diluted, as well as a touch of mintiness. The abv is relatively high for a mezcal (the Distiller notes say 50.2% but this is a batch product that varies slightly and my bottle states 51%). "Good" : 84/100 (3.75 stars)

A delicate, Agave Spirit 'by Aquilino Garcia Lopez for the Vago Distillery NOM-O188X in Oaxaca, Mexico uniting two of Oaxaca’s great contributions to humanity in a single bottle, corn & Mezcal. He infused roast corn into a batch of once distilled Espadín Mezcal then distilled it a second time to arrive at a very unique & flavorful Mezcal. Even better, he raises this corn himself alongside his agave crops!' It has a toasty opening with notes of corn & nut; a light body adding notes of roasted corn, nuts, vegetal, fruit & a hint of agave; that leads to a short & sweet finish with more hints of agave & lime. August / December 2018 / December 2020

I'll be honest, my first couple sips of this were underwhelming. It was good, don't get me wrong. But in the same way of other mezcals. Now I like mezcals, so that's not a criticism, but there wasn't anything extraordinary happening. But after I walked away and came back around 15 minutes later, the mezcal had warmed up a bit and opened up, and suddenly I got so many more notes. Something grassy, something a bit dark, something sweet and light even under the smoke. This is very nice, even if I'm sure I'm not quite able to fully understand it yet. It's all good though, we have some time, this mezcal and I.

Interesting, but you can do better. I've generally found mezcals at its best when there's a backbone of earthy smoke, with some sweetness or minerality. Another aspect I love about mezcals is that it's purely dependent on two things: skill of the artisan producer and the type of agave. Anything else kinda diminishes the natural flavor of the wild agaves. This one has roasted corn added. It removes the smoky character, but doesn't really do anything more, except add a bit of sweetness. Stick with Del Maguey Chichicapa, might be a few dollars more, but a whole other class

On the nose I get orange zest, wet stone, faint chocolate-peppermint candy and agave. The mouthfeel is warm and slightly oily. On the palate, I get notes of vanilla, napoles, roasted pumpkin seeds, campfire smoke and charcoal, with fainter notes of lemon zest, burnt sugar and wet stone. The finish is long and hot, with the campfire smoke and charcoal notes lingering throughout, along with fainter vanilla, citrus, burnt sugar and wet stone. Very drinkable and there is a lot to pick apart and like if you take your time with it.

Bought for a particular cocktail, but I've been using it in several and occasionally, to sip. I wouldn't know about the corn without being told, but this is still quite nice. Nice to drink neat and plays well in cocktails if I forget the price. Little smoke on the nose; mostly agave, wet wood, and some sharpness. Great taste and mouthfeel. Silky. Vegetal. Very sweet. Lingering but subtle smoke and light/inoffensive medicinal on the very long finish .