De Matachines Lamparillo

Item: De Matachines Lamparillo
Rating: 4.0
Author: The Editors

Durango lamparillo – asperrima from Nombre de Dios

Score: 4.0/5 agaves

Producer: De Matachines
Maestro: Juan Perez
Region: Nombre de Dios, Durango
Agave: Lamparillo
ABV: 45%
Price: $200 ($$)

Verdict

Lamparillo is one of those Durango agaves that rarely makes it to US shelves intact, and De Matachines ships it with Juan Perez's name attached. Buy this alongside the Amaras Logia cenizo – both are Durango wild agaves correctly presented, and the pair rewrites your sense of what 'mezcal' means. 45% is a shade low but the agave carries.

Durango's wild agaves are the undertold chapter – lamparillo is the one to read

Tasting notes

Nose: Pine with red dust

Palate: Lamparillo (asperrima) at 45% from Juan Perez – Durango's wild agave catalog opening up, with a dry, resinous character the south doesn't produce

Finish: Dry, resinous – long

The bottom line

Buy for the Durango geography lesson