#ancientagaves

This 175 liter batch was made by Salomon Rey Rodriguez (Tío Rey)  in Sola de Vega, Oaxaca (16°28'44.72"N 96°57'42.80"W) in August of 2014.

It was made from 77% Agave Blanco and 23% Agave Sierra Negra.  Both are sub varieties of Agave Americana.

These agave varietals are quite large and can take an extraordinary amount of time to mature.  The Agave Blanco used for this batch was planted by Tio Rey’s grandfather 45 years ago!  Tio Rey has been watching these plants grow on his property since he was 10 years old.  The Sierra Negra takes anywhere from 10 to 25 years to mature and has a slightly higher sugar content. The higher sugar content enabled a better fermentation and a touch more yield.

Like all Mezcal Vago batches, all the agave types are cooked, crushed, fermented, and distilled together.  Percentages of agave types on the label are dry weight of the piñas before they are roasted underground.

The amount of history and patience that went into this batch of mezcal is astonishing.  For Tío Rey to wait 45 years to harvest his agave and then to use the ancient techniques of hand mashing the agave hearts with wooden mallets and distilling the mezcal in small clay pots demonstrates his respect for and connection with his ancestors.  Agave reproduces only once at the end of its life cycle, so agaves that take longer to mature, reproduce less frequently and therefore are more rare. Most farmers won’t bother taking up valuable land with a crop like this.  For Mezcal Vago to be able to bottle and export this batch is an honor and frankly just lucky timing.

The majority of the Mezcal Vago Blanco y Negra was shipped to our distributor in  New York, Nicolas Palazzi.  His passion for tradition and quality are unmatched in the spirits world and we are happy to have this timeless mezcal end up in his hands.

ABV is 51.6%.

Producer: Salomón Rey Rodriguez

Location: Sola de Vega, Oaxaca

The palenque and agave fields of Salomón Rey Rodriguez or "Tío Rey" (Uncle Rey) are located in the famous mezcal region Sola de Vega. The mezcaleros in this region distill mezcal almost exclusively using clay pots "Olla de Barro".

Tío Rey's town of Gulerá is about 15 minutes up the valley and is part of the municipality Villas Sola de Vega. The lush mountain valley is a 2.5-hour drive from Oaxaca and sits at 1450 M above sea level.

Tío Rey has a great supply of spring water that flows year round and contributes to the unique flavor of his mezcals. The mineral rich soil and relatively cooler climate make for a perfect spot for growing a variety of agaves. Sola de Vega has the most diversity of agave in Oaxaca and therefore the world. Salomón Rey has at least 15 varieties of agave that he cultivates, including: Espadín, Coyote, Arroqueño, Mexicano, Tobalá, Sierra Negra, Madre Cuixe and Barril.

Sola de Vega agave maturation times:

Espadín - 7 -12 years

Mexicano - 7- 12 years

Arroqueño - 9 - 25 years

Coyote - 5 - 10 years

Sierra Negra 10 -25 Years

Tobalá - 8 - 18 Years

The palenque (distillery) is at Tío Rey's ranch where he lives full time with his family. He built it approximately 10 years ago from parts of an older palenque that was his fathers. It moved around from nearby locations over the years. The lineage of mezcaleros in Tío Rey's family could arguably go back thousands of years.

Tío Rey has never produced mezcal commercially before Mezcal Vago and produces exclusively for Mezcal Vago.

Tío Rey’s batch sizes are generally from 100 liters to 450 liters. He has two classic earthen ovens that can each hold around three tons. One oven is the normal dug out hole in the ground and lined with large river rocks and the other is dug straight into bedrock. He roasts each batch for 2 to 3 days.

The cooked agave is hand ground with wooden mallets called canoas y masos. The roasted piñas are chopped slightly with a machete then the pieces are placed on a wooden platform and pounded with the mallets.  An incredibly laborious technique but they are sure the flavor is better this way when not molested by such modern technology as a cement wheel and horse!

                                                        Tío Rey has three fermentation vats. Two are typical vats, cylindrical and made from pine. The third is made from the trunk of a large Pino Sabino (Pine tree) hollowed out in the shape of a canoe and has been in use for 90 years!

 For distillation, Tío Rey uses a series of clay pots. The clay pots are called “Olla de Barro” in Spanish. That is why Mezcal Vago refers to its mezcals that are distilled in this manner as “en Barro.” They hold about 50 liters each.  Each pair of pots shares a fire. The stills are made of stacks of two pots. One that holds the mash and has an open top, and another with an open bottom that rests on top of the first one. On the top pot there is an upside-down stainless steel bowl that water continually runs in and out of. When the heat from the mash rises and hits the cool top created by the water, condensation occurs. An agave leaf works as a large spoon to catch the dripping condensation (mezcal) and runs into a reed that flows the mezcal into the collection container.

This whole process is laborious and takes around 4 times the effort of a copper still and stone tahona method. Tío Rey never adds water to his mezcal post distillation. Cuts are made by taste and smell.