Mexican whiskey has arrived
Before mezcal found me, I was a whiskey drinker, specifically bourbon. It appealed to my desire to nurse a drink, sipping slowly over time, sometimes neat, sometimes over ice. I was no connoisseur, and most of what I drank was
Sin maiz, no hay pais – The case for Mexican Corn Whiskey
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The menu for the evening[/caption]
Jonathan Barbieri, artist and owner of the mezcal brand Pierde Almas, knows how to tell a story, as evidenced by the audience at Oakland’s Calavera entranced by his words describing the days of selling mezcal when it was illegal contraband. Produced in palenques outside of small pueblos and then sold by women who were more likely to avoid being stopped by authorities, it is a romantic tale and sets a nostalgic mood. It lays the perfect foundation for the bigger story that night - his latest project is producing an “ancestral corn” whiskey from the very palenques that now fuel the burgeoning mezcal industry.
Take the mezcal, leave the cocktail
Just had a great dinner at Pim Techamuanvivit's new Thai restaurant Kin Khao in San Francisco. It's a fantastic place that creates a vivacious atmosphere in the corner of a bland hotel, has a great wine list matched to the food
Movies, mezcal, and Bricia Lopez (who could ask for more?)
We're obviously just catching up with our rss feeds (the disappearance of google reader hit us hard) but better later than never. First up, the ever fabulous Bricia Lopez has a link to a beguiling trailer about Oaxaca's traditions that makes
Celebrating Pierde Almas' pechuga in Chichicapam
I had the extreme honor of being invited to a party to celebrate the release of Pierde Almas’ new pechuga. It was held at the palenque in Chichicapam where, last year, I had attended another party and well, we’ll just
SF Cocktail Week – Jumpstarting with mezcal
I definitely see the possibilities of a regular mezcal Monday. Last night it was at Rio Grande on Market Street—a kickoff of sorts for SF Cocktail Week and hosted by Ryan Fitzgerald, former Beretta star bartender/mixologist, driving force for the Tequila
A Taste of LA with mezcal
It was a whirlwind Labor Day weekend in Los Angeles at the Taste of LA held in Paramount Studios' sprawling old New York back lot. It felt very much like a street festival with potholes and cracked sidewalks which ensured that
Exciting Updates for July 25 Pop-up Mezcaleria
As we’ve previously posted, we’ll be hosting our first mezcal tasting in San Francisco on July 25th. We’ve got some pretty exciting news to share about the event. First, we’re thrilled to present the US premiere of Alipús and will
The conceptual art of mezcal
A recent interview with Ron Cooper in Class Magazine reminded me that long before he got into mezcal he was a dynamic and important part of the Los Angeles art scene that has been exhaustively chronicled by the big Pacific
Silvestres and espadin tasting
We just finished our third tasting this time focused entirely on mezcals that we brought back from a recent trip to Oaxaca. We paired off silvestres and espadins for comparison and contrast. All are in the traditional Oaxacan style. We tasted: 1)