TOBALA - chichicapam

Batch: FH-06

Release date: Luum, London - Exclusive Batch Pick

At a glance:

  • Maguey: Tobala (A. Potatorum)
  • Producer: Fortunato Hernandes & Family
  • Community: San Balthazar Chichicapam, Ocotlán, Oaxaca Central Valleys
  • Cooking: 4 days in un-lined earthen pit with mesquite wood
  • Milling: Machete & horse-drawn tahona
  • Fermentation: 4 days in open-air wooden tina with well water
  • Distillation: Double pass in copper alembic
  • Batch size: 55 litres
  • Date of production: January 2023
  • ABV: 46.9%

We met Fortunato on our first ever trip to his community, San Balthazar Chichicapam, back in 2016. We didn’t know at the time how lucky we were.

In the years since, not only has it been a great pleasure to return many times to visit the welcoming family, but his bottles have become crowd favourites every time we show them at a tasting.

Fortunato’s mezcales are produced in the traditional style of the community: Agaves are roasted in an un-lined earthen pit filled with local wood including mesquite; The roasted maguey are then chopped to size by machete before being milled with horse drawn tahona; the mash is fermented with well water before ultimately being double distilled in coper alembique stills.

This was one of the very first batches to be produced at Fortunato’s newly build palenque, meaning these plants were the first to be crushed by the shiny white stone tahona.

The roasted and maguey Tobala were then left to naturally ferment for 4 days in brand open air tinas sitting behind Fortunato in the picture below. The fermented mash was then double distilled in the brand new coper alembics.

  • a group of people filling an outside oven with Pina's to produce mezcal

    First roast at the new palenque

  • a stone tahona milling pina's for mezcal

    First use of shiny new tahona

  • a man crushing pina's by hand to be used for making mezcal

Below you can see the same tahona as above, a little worn in with a roof above and stills operating in the background. As well as fresh cut maguey madrecuixe, cuixe, and tobala delivered to the palenque.

It’s a true family business, with Fortunato’s wife Victoria often involved with production. His daughter Estela manages sales from the bodega, and even her young daughters get involved while not at school. Look out for a future batch from Estela’s husband Pedro.

  • a stone tahona used for milling mezcal
  • different varieties of Agave plants ready to be cooked to make mezcal
  • a family helping fill bottles of mescal

World map with pins of visitor home countries in the bodega, and Estela in the bodega.

  • A world map sat on large plastic containers full of mezcal
  • A world map showing the parts of Europe a particular mezcal is available
  • A woman with a pen surrounded by plastic containers full of mezcal

The new palenque now looking well worked.

  • A Mezcal distillery in Mexico with its copper pot still and oven beneath

Multicolumn

Multicolumn

Sin Gusano Project orange logo

Gracias Gracias Fortunato & Family

House Tasting Notes:

Nose: Mineral, herbal, rich. Medium on the smoke scale. A field of coriander and spring onion after a rain shower.

Palate: That rich minimality from the nose follows through beautifully on first sip. Fresh picked mushrooms come through on the mid-palate with a light and pleasant background smoke from the mesquite wood roast.

Finish: This really well balanced batch continues it’s consistency, with the rich smokiness slowly fading into semi-dry and moreish finish.

a bottle of mezcal

This batch has been bottled exclusive for Luum, London.

For a copita, head to the bar.

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