It’s always a pleasure to return to this community and visit the Ramírez family. Luis, his father Sergio, and mother Sara, are excellent hosts and make excellent spirits.
Spirits here are made in the quintessential style of Ejutla, detailed below. In recent years Luis has been experimenting with fruit. For this delightful high proof batch, 350kg of small and sweet criollo pineapples were added to the boiling pot of an unusual extra distillation.
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Most communities in the central valleys of Oaxaca 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
The piñas of maguey Espadín 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.
Espadín, Madrecuishe, and Mexicano in the oven
Luis & Sergio uncovering the oven
Then, of course, it’s time for the all important 2-in-1 distillation.
And in this case, 350kg of criollo pineapples (the small and sweet ones) were chopped and added to the boiling chamber of a second distillation run.
Gracias Luis & family
Profile overview:
Clean and rich on the nose, as one can expect from this Ejuta style distillation, with gentle hints of tropical fruit. Warming and sweet on first sip, yet gentle for its high proof. Pineapple tones build into the mid-palate, ultimately becoming the defining flavour of this fun fruit pechuga.
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