espadín, barril, mexicano - amatengo
Batch: LEJ-01
Release date: April 2023
With this release we’re very pleased to return to the Juarez family in San Agustín Amatengo.
We have previously bottled from Sergio Juarez Patricio and his son Luis. This batch is exclusively Luis, while there are more on the way from the family as a whole, including younger brother Oliver.
The style of production in most of the Ejutla district differs in a crucial way to the rest of Oaxaca’s central valleys. Most communities in these valleys double distil using coper alembics (with a couple of exceptions, most notably the famous clay pot distillation of Santa Catarina Minas). However in San Agustín Amatengo and most of Ejutla, producers create a 2-in-1 distillation using a ‘refrescadera’ method.
Luis & father Sergio fitting the refrescadera
This smart distillation set-up has a reflux plate installed inside the otherwise regular domed copper top chamber of the still. That dome also has an outer casing that’s filled with water during distillation, keeping it cooler.
When the rising vapours hit that relatively cool internal plate, they re-condense and drop back into the still to vaporise again before escaping into the cooling coil.
This reflux action means the liquid that runs off the still has effectively been double distilled - referred to locally as a 2-in-1 distillation.
Knowing when to refresh (refrecador) the liquid in the water bath is key to the process working properly.
Looking up into the cooling chamber and its plate
Filling the refrescadra
There’s a wealth of agave variety in Oaxaca’s central valleys, and for this batch Luis selected a roughly equal mix of Espadín (A.Angustifolia), Barril (A.Karwinski), and Mexicano (A.Rhodacantha).
Espadín, Madrecuishe, and Mexicano in the oven
Luis & Sergio uncovering the oven
The piñas were roasted the small un-lined horns for 3 days, before being crushed by the palenque’s huge thona, pulled by two oxen.
The cooked and crushed agave was then put in both wooden and plastic tinas along with local spring water for an open air ferment of 8-9 days.
Then, of course, it’s time for the all important 2-in-1 distillation.
If you’re passing through Oaxaca and would like to try a whole selection of spirits from this palenque, we would highly recommend a trip to the Gozona bar, which exclusively stocks the family brand. You may even meet Luis and be lucky enough to get an invite to the palenque.
Gracias Luis & family
Tasting notes: Cinnamon, black tea, and hints of nutmeg on the nose. Fresh and floral on first sip, with that nutmeg coming back in the mid-palate before leading into a long and complex finish with lots of dark chocolate covered coffee beans. Gets a little more vegetal and savoury as it opens in the glass, with the complex finish that becomes increasingly moreish.
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