Espadín (1L)

About the Producer:  Mtra. Reyna Rodriguez Ramirez

Agua del Sol co-founder Félix Monterrosa knows Reyna Rodríguez because she worked with his uncle Melchor since the 90's. In those years, her mezcal was sold in bulk for local markets in Oaxaca, Chiapas and Puebla.

Mtra. Reyna is a third generation producer from La Reforma, Yautepec, a region referred to as La Chontal. She recalls that her grandfather produced mezcal by crushing agave by hand with wooden mallets and distilling it in clay pots. “We used to head down from Santa María Ecatepec to the ranch, which is warmer, to produce mezcal,” she says.

Reyna talks about the infamous timbres and collection booths that enabled tax collectors to extort mezcal purveyors in the 60’s. “Since mezcal was contraband,” she notes, “most could not avoid being extorted, but we did so by hiding. My dear mom–may she rest in peace–she hid her mezcal in the bush and did whatever was necessary to sell it outside of Yautepec.”

Mtra. Reyna recalls that her mother was in charge of going to sell the mezcal on the Istmo de Tehuantepec. “In the 90’s, mezcal was a cheap drink; a load of firewood cost more than a truckload of agave…A bottle of water used to be more expensive than a bottle of mezcal.” Since about 2007, mezcal began to increase in price. “Fortunately,” she says, “mezcal commands a higher price and stores greater value now.”