Reviews / Don Mateo Alto
Review · · by The Editors
Don Mateo Alto
Alto agave – a Michoacán variant that only a handful of producers bottle regularly
Score: 3.5/5 agaves
- Producer: Don Mateo de la Sierra
- Maestro: Emilio Vieyra
- Region: San Miguel, Michoacán
- Agave: Alto
- ABV: 46%
- Price: $70 ($$)
Verdict
Alto is Michoacán vocabulary – a bottle type you won't find from Oaxacan producers, one of the state's small but real category contributions. Don Mateo renders it without pushing, which is the right call: the agave is distinctive enough that it doesn't need a producer leaning on it to make the point. Buy it for the state's argument; don't expect Oaxacan drama.
Michoacán alto is a category word worth learning, and this is the bottle that teaches it
Tasting notes
Nose: Pine, warm earth, dry hay, faint floral, a trace of green-herb underneath
Palate: Lean at 46%. Alto is a vocabulary word that mostly shows up in Michoacán – softer than cupreata, drier than cenizo, with a piney-herbal lift the other Michoacán agaves don't quite produce
Finish: Cooling, with a slow pine-herb fade – very long
The bottom line
Buy if you want the category to widen for Michoacán-focused drinking
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 4 US retailers. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.