Agua del Sol Espadin con Maiz y Cacao

Item: Agua del Sol Espadin con Maiz y Cacao
Rating: 3.5
Author: The Editors

Berta Vázquez runs espadín through corn and cacao, a Chichicapam pechuga

Score: 3.5/5 agaves

Producer: Agua del Sol
Maestro: Berta Vasquez
Region: San Baltazar Chichicapam, Oaxaca
Agave: Espadin
ABV: 45%
Price: $55 ($)

Verdict

Pechugas live or die on balance, and corn plus cacao could easily have turned dessert. Berta Vázquez keeps the cacao dry and the corn savory, so it reads as a meal rather than a sweet. It is a specific mood more than an everyday pour. Buy it for the table at a long dinner, not the quiet nightcap.

Tortilla and cocoa over a steady espadín

Tasting notes

Nose: Toasted corn, cocoa nib, baked apple, warm spice, faint smoke

Palate: Round and savory at 45-50%. The maíz brings a tortilla warmth, the cacao a dry bitter edge, espadín holding the base steady

Finish: Warm, toasty, gently bitter

The bottom line

Buy it for the dinner table, not the nightcap