How, and where, did distillation of agave spirits like mezcal, tequila, tuxca, raicilla, and bacanora first begin in Mexico? Several theories have been proposed by researchers, historians, and archaeologists. Some suggest indigenous populations had been distilling alcohol from agave plants before European contact. Others claim agave spirit distillation began during the early 17th century, after [...]
What does Erstwhile mean? What is the story behind Erstwhile Mezcal’s logo? We get asked these questions a lot from folks who are getting to know us for the first time. I figured it is high time that I write a blog post addressing these excellent questions. WHAT IS THE STORY BEHIND [...]
Give the storytellers and craft spirit lovers in your life a gift that will light up their imaginations this holiday season. Erstwhile Ancestral Mezcal Trio is open for pre-orders only at SpiritHub.com. Pre-order today in time for the holidays, while supplies last. Taste three heritage mezcals - distilled in clay pots - from two legendary producers: Madre [...]
Erstwhile Mezcal is thrilled to release the world’s first Bacon Pechuga, an all-women collaboration between Erstwhile founder Yuan Ji, Master Distiller Hortensia Hernández Martínez, and her daughters - Lidia and Nallely - in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca. This remarkable 300-liter batch of Bacon Pechuga Mezcal is one of seven exciting new limited-edition releases from Erstwhile Mezcal [...]
Master Mezcalero Juan Abel Quiroz Agustín prefers to go by “Abel”. Born and raised in Santa María Sola where he still resides, Abel saved for years before achieving the dream of building his own palenque next to his house. Santa María Sola is a municipality in the district of Sola de Vega, in the [...]
WE Are a a mission-driven company. Our mission at Erstwhile Mezcal: partner with small, independent, family-owned producers and bring their craft to international consumers for the first time. Erstwhile is a boutique importer of agave spirits based in Brooklyn, New York. We are a young but fast-growing company, with distribution, sales and loyal fans [...]
Juan Hernández Méndez - our friend; Erstwhile Mezcal's partner producer; loving husband and father of four; skilled mezcal artisan from Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca - passed away on Sunday evening, September 27, 2020. We are drinking Juan's mezcal tonight to remember him. We hope you are too. Where to begin? Juan was kind. Juan was welcoming. [...]
Erstwhile Mezcal’s core values are gender-neutral for the most part: mezcal education, transparency, empowering small producers to grow through export. That said, elevating underrepresented voices - including those of women - in Mezcal and the broader wine & spirits industry pulls equal weight in guiding every action and decision we make as a company. Before [...]
It was winter, perhaps 2000 or 2001. I would sometimes go to Chef Waldy Malouf’s (now defunct) Beacon in the evenings for a burger and a cocktail. But the real treat was hanging out with the bartender Audrey Saunders. Audrey and I knew each other from the old AOL Online Spirits Boards where, before the [...]
Welcome to the third installation of Erstwhile Mezcal’s blog series, in which I share my firsthand experiences and takeaways on Why Is Mezcal So Dam$ Expensive in the United States. In Part I of this blog series, I observed that for Erstwhile’s first shipment of mezcals from Oaxaca to the United States, our production costs [...]
Rey Arellanes Angeles, a skilled producer of ancestral mezcal, runs a tight ship in Santa Catarina Minas, Oaxaca. While Erstwhile Mezcal’s current lineup does not feature any mezcal made by Rey, my co-founder Kevin and I are his fans in our personal capacity as mezcal enthusiasts. We have many of Rey’s distillations in our personal [...]
Welcome to the second installation of Erstwhile Mezcal’s blog series, in which I share my firsthand experiences and takeaways on Why Is Mezcal So Dam$ Expensive in the United States. In a previous post, I observed that for Erstwhile’s first shipment of mezcals from Oaxaca to the United States, our production costs account for only [...]
Ever wonder why some mezcals cost less than $50 per bottle, and others close to $150 and more? Are the expensive bottles better? And if so, in what ways? Before entering the mezcal industry, I had these same questions. That was before my co-founder and I set forth to start Erstwhile Mezcal, an importing company, [...]
Recently, I had a disturbing but thought-provoking experience with a discussion thread on Reddit. It occurred to me that the problems underlying my experience are not limited to the mezcal industry, and may manifest themselves in other industries as well. I want to share what happened and how I responded, in case my fellow [...]
What is the proper way to drink mezcal? This is by far one of the most common questions we receive when hosting tastings and mezcal education events. While there are no hard and fast rules – we at Erstwhile Mezcal believe you should enjoy your mezcal in any way that makes you happy – we [...]
Last Sunday (June 16, 2019, which also happened to be Father’s Day), we made our mezcal debut at Colonia Verde’s sold-out Sunday Asado. Although the event was only three hours long, the turnout, incredible energy and all-around good vibes were free flowing and permeated Colonia’s Verde lovely Brooklyn backyard from the get-go. We had a [...]
Hello, fellow mezcal lovers! We have some really exciting news to share with you. You can now order Erstwhile Mezcal online directly from our website, and have your favorite mezcals shipped directly to your front door or to family / friends all over the country! To fully understand why this is such a big deal for us, consider Erstwhile [...]
It is our immense pleasure to spotlight and team up with our friends at La Lonchería: New York’s first Mexican lonchería and our beloved neighborhood mezcaleria in the heart of Bushwick, Brooklyn. Imagine a classic Mexican cantina meets modern luncheonette / diner. Serving casual but sublimely delicious food. Understated but undeniably cool in every aesthetic, [...]
Epifania, Silverio and their sons. Photo provided by the Consejo Regulador del Mezcal (CRM). Mezcal made from Espadín, a cultivated (versus wild) varietal of the agave plant, is by far the most common varietal you are likely to find in your local liquor store, cocktail bars or restaurants. Espadín is the most [...]
Hortensia Hernández Martínez and Juan Hernández Méndez, circa March 2018, in front of the fermentation vats at their family palenque in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca. At Erstwhile Mezcal, we work with each and every one of our partner mezcaleros with care and passion, committing our brand and reputation only after countless tastings [...]
Erstwhile Mezcal is the first and only importer to launch a certified artisanal Henequén mezcal in the US market. This rare distillation, made from cultivated Henequén piñas, is a small-batch limited edition of only 397 liters (about 500 bottles total). Master mezcalero Juan Hernández Méndez (one of our partner producers based in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca) [...]
La Mas Noble y Leal Ciudad de Oaxaca dividida en Quarteles de orden del Exmo. Señor Marques de Branciforte Virei de esta Nueva España. Erstwhile Mezcal is the passion project of its two co-founders: Yuan Ji and yours sincerely. From its inception, Erstwhile Mezcal has always been inextricably tied to our never-ending love affair with [...]
