If you’re a tequila drinker, but you don’t drink mezcal, what are you waiting for? For the uninitiated, mezcal is the umbrella term for all Mexican-made, agave-based spirits. This includes tequila, raicilla, bacanora, and, of course, mezcal.
Like many drinkers, I didn’t get into mezcal until years of sipping and mixing with tequila. What I found was a whole different agave-based spirit experience and one that every drinker should embrace.
Mezcal’s heart is in Oaxaca, but it can be produced in a handful of other states. While tequila can only be made using the hearts of Blue Weber agave plants, mezcal can be made from more than forty different varieties. Often made with traditional techniques and roasted in underground pits, mezcal has a variety of flavors. Some are vegetal and herbal, others are earthy with minerality, and many are pleasantly smoky.
Bartenders pick the best mezcals
Now that you have some background on mezcal, it’s time to find some to drink. To start you on your mezcal journey, we’ve asked a handful of well-known bartenders for help. They were kind enough to tell us their picks for the best mezcals to drink. Keep scrolling to see all of their choices.
Rosaluna Mezcal
“There are so many great Mezcal brands available now, great to enjoy neat or in cocktails. The signature cocktail at Maison Nur, also on the list at Bar No.79 and Bar Tetto Rooftop, is the Smoke Show, which combines tequila, mezcal, smoked agave, tamarind, and fresh lime, served on a large cube of ice with a dramatic, beautiful flourish of smoke at the end! For this drink, I love to use Rosaluna Mezcal as it mixes really well, brings minerality and smoke without dominating the balance of flavor.” – Charlotte Voisey, bartender at Bar Tetto Rooftop in New York City
Banhez Mezcal
“My go-to mezcal is Banhez. It’s a nuanced mezcal that is able to be enjoyed neat and is affordable enough to play around with in cocktails. It delivers everything an American palate has come to expect when drinking mezcal without being too overpowering. I’ve used it in cocktails with beets for deeper flavors and all sorts of classics with citrus, and Banhez never disappointed.” – Mickey Mullins, Beverage Director of The Bower and The Bower Bar in New Orleans
5 Sentidos Mezcal
“Cinco Sentidos Mezcal is one of my favorites because it’s a series of small-scale master mezcaleros’ Mezcal created in super small production and never the same. If you can get a release of Pechuga Mezcal from them, do it—it’s on the pricey side but worth every penny. Because of how it’s made, it’s fruity and silky – just don’t let the fact that raw chicken is used in the making of it be the determining factor whether you try it or not.” – José Medina Camacho, Co-Founder & Beverage Director at Adiõs & Salud Taqueria in Birmingham, Alabama
Del Maguey Chichicapa Mezcal
“For the novice, I usually start with something like Del Maguey Chichicapa. It’s a great intro mezcal that is nicer than, say, your more cocktail-type mezcals. With great citrus, smoky, and fruit aromas on the palate, you get the salinity, pepper, smoke, and slight stone fruit notes.” – Jesse Carr, Food & Beverage Director of The Virgin Hotels in New Orleans
Koch Elemental Mezcal
“A mezcal I always recommend is Koch Elemental Mezcal. It’s cocktail-friendly but also balanced enough to enjoy on its own. With notes of burnt butter, coffee, and hints of citrus, paired with just the right amount of smoke and herbaceousness, Koch is perfect for both mezcal newbies and agave aficionados alike. Plus, their commitment to environmental sustainability means I can sip guilt-free all year.” – Michael Vollmer, Assistant Director of Food & Beverage at Kimpton Gray Hotel in Chicago
Yuu Baal Pechuga Mezcal
“One of my favorite Mezcals to recommend is Yuu Baal Pechuga, out of Oaxaca. The thing I hear most from Mezcal-curious drinkers is that they don’t like anything too smoky. While smoke is typical in the roasting of the agave piñas for mezcal, as is the use of Espadin, the most common Maguey in Mezcal production, the distillation process is where the Pechuga style differs. Fresh fruits are added to the still and produce bright, layered flavors and aromas; think citrus, tropical fruits, and baking spices that balance out the earthy and smoky notes. While tradition calls for raw meat to be hung in the still in this process, there aren’t any noticeably gamey notes from this practice (in this case, a raw turkey breast.) Fear not. What you get is a nuanced and vibrant mezcal full of fruity flavor. Sip first, ask questions later.” – Steve Groom, General Manager of Costera in New Orleans
Gracias a Dios Mezcal
“Gracias a Dios — an excellent entry-level mezcal with a mid-range price point to boot. On the palate: a gentle sweetness, floral with some spiciness on the backend, while also not being a complete smoke bomb that might jar the uninitiated palate. As someone who leans more toward scotch and Japanese-style whiskies, it is always interesting to find some crossover in flavor between spirits made with completely different ingredients and production methods. I’m glad that I have more to add to my repertoire for guests at the bar.” – Christopher Devern, Lead Bartender at Red Owl Tavern in Philadelphia
