Hello Mezcalero!
Today I want to share with you an achievement of our entire team, and personally, one that became a challenge: our new release, Mitre Ancestral. This product possesses great complexity and took two years of work to bring to fruition. However, we are more than satisfied and proud of the result.
As always, we aim to create impactful products that offer a unique experience full of nuances and contrasts that surprise our consumers. Of course, Mitre Ancestral was no exception. With this new addition to our family, we aim to convey everything that makes a mezcal distilled in clay pots of high quality so special.
Let me explain a bit in general terms. The mezcal industry is divided into three categories:
- Mezcal: Produced industrially.
- Artisanal Mezcal: Characterized by cooking with wood, natural fermentation, and distillation in copper stills.
- Ancestral Mezcal: Differs from artisanal mezcal by its distillation in clay pots.
And why do I say it was a challenge?
This category is extremely rare due to its production difficulty. In 2020, only 0.4% of the mezcal bottled for domestic sale was ancestral. This amounts to approximately 13 thousand bottles of 750 ml, and this percentage has remained constant for the past 3 years.
To give you an idea of why the production of this category of mezcal is so limited, let's talk about its process. In one day of work, up to 200 liters of artisanal mezcal can be distilled in a copper still. However, in a clay pot, it's only possible to distill 12 liters of ancestral mezcal per day. This means that you need 16 days of work to achieve the same volume as a single day of artisanal mezcal production.
This ancestral distillation process adds mineral notes, robust flavors, and fruity and smoky aromas that are not found in other distillation methods.
Mitre Ancestral is a product that will be available in our catalog in small productions. Every year, we will bottle a limited number of bottles, making it an even more special distilled beverage that I'm sure you will enjoy. I invite you to try it.
As always, I hope you have learned something new about this great Mexican distilled beverage and that you share it with your mezcal-loving friends.
Cheers!
