Make it a Noche Súper Buena!

December 12, 2024

This month marks 10 years since I first visited Oaxaca—a trip that changed my life and inspired me to start this business. It was the culmination of a transformative year living in Mexico. While sharing an apartment with my cousins in Mexico City, I spent most weekends visiting family and working on our casita in Atlixco, Puebla. This time of year always makes me nostalgic for Mexico—the posadas and piñatas, the memelas and pambazos, and sneaking up on the roof to drink beer while the adults "talked."

And who could forget the fireworks? Growing up in Los Angeles, I couldn’t buy fireworks (or didn’t know where to find them), so the thrill of getting them in corner stores for pesos was irresistible. I still laugh at the memory of one Noche Buena when my teenage cousins and I poured an entire bottle of tequila Cazadores into three glasses and insisted on drinking it de caballito. I don’t remember much of that night except for assigning new nicknames to my aunt and uncle, but to this day, I’ve never been able to enjoy tequila quite the same way.

That year in Mexico remains a treasure. My cousin and I sampled every mezcal we could find in Mexico City, but it wasn’t until I attended a private tasting with Eduardo “Lalo” Ángeles that my curiosity turned into a passion. At the time, I had no idea who he was, but I’ve been fortunate to visit him since and share that memory with him. At the tasting, Lalo spoke about preserving traditional mezcal while pouring Espadín into a jícara from a funnel to emphasize the perlas that sparkled in the liquid. The mezcal was extraordinary, but what captivated me was Lalo himself—a man who had produced this spirit with his own hands and traveled hours by bus from Oaxaca to share it.

When I finally made my first trip to Oaxaca, it was with an old roommate visiting Mexico City. Together, we met up with my friend Adriana, who was deeply immersed in the world of agave. She worked at a modern tasting room for artisanal mezcal, where having a friend behind the bar made the experience even more special. We stowed away some bottles as holiday gifts and continued exploring, but I couldn’t wait to share what I’d discovered.

Returning to the U.S. was tough at first, but the bottles of mezcal I brought back helped me share my experiences. Each time I opened one with friends, they were hooked. Their questions spurred me to learn more, to ask Adriana, and to return to Mexico for further exploration. Turning this passion into a full-time career has been an incredible privilege. There is, of course, a much longer story between that first visit and what we’ve accomplished, but my favorite part of the job remains introducing people to mezcal for the first time. Like most producers, I start with Espadín and the story of who made it.

This holiday season, I’m proud to share the work of Mtra. Reyna Rodriguez, an old friend of the Monterrosa family. Reyna works with her son Elmer at a communal palenque in San Carlos Yautepec, in a region known as La Chontal. They grow their own agave and craft mezcal with care and tradition. We invite you to share your love of traditional agave spirits this season with a bottle of Espadín by Mtra. Reyna from Agua del Sol.