The nose starts with a big funky blue cheese blast then a white wine vinegar drizzled over grilled green beans, eggplant and fried yucca root before fruits of salted mango, papaya and fried bananas that transitions to a tangy smoky barbecue sauced platter of short ribs with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a medium yet airy mouthfeel starting with charred lemon and limes that turns moderately bitter that slowly fades to grilled veggies of olive oil covered Portobello, eggplant and red bell pepper that have been topped with blue cheese crumbles before fruits of mango sorbet, mandarin orange zest and caramelized bananas that transitions to a tangy smoky barbecue sauced platter of short ribs with medium ethanol burn. The finish is medium length with mango sorbet, caramelized bananas, lime zest, olive oil coated grilled portobellos, caramelized onions and tangy barbecue sauce short ribs. This is a fantastic mezcal that manages to balance grilled veggies, blue cheese, citrus and barbecue meat well, but leans toward a higher bitter and sour note to start the taste than I prefer. At around $120, I’d much rather pick up a Del Maguey Arroqueno for close to the same price, but I’m still very happy to have this barbecued meat and veggie fruit platter in my cabinet.
About this bottle
Rey Campero means "King of the Countryside" in Spanish. It's a gentle reign in this kingdom, one with a commitment to local sustainability. For each maguey harvested for their spirits, others are planted. This mezcal is made from wild tepextate matured an impressive 15-18 years at harvest. After roasting and crushing by mule-pulled tahona, it's fermented with wild yeast under open air. It is then double-distilled in alembic stills.
How it tastes
Measured across 14 flavor axes. Tap a note to find other bottles that lead with it.
Reviews
Showing the most detailed of 5 parsed reviews.
On the nose ot smells delicious and earthy with notes of spice, chili, plantz, trees 😂, more spice and peppers. On the palate its super smooth and delicious
Nose - fruity/honey/tangy Palate - fresh cut grass, lemon Finish - longer, sweet, mild spice, dry at the end Overall - refreshing!
Spicy, smooth, subtle smoke
Spicy!
Tastes like this
Closest flavor profiles across the whole catalog.