Reviews / El Buho Especial Arroqueño
Review · · by The Editors
El Buho Especial Arroqueño
Arroqueño at 53% – El Buho's heavyweight, and a category-defining argument for high-proof arroqueño
Score: 4.5/5 agaves
- Producer: El Buho Mezcal
- Maestro: Octavio Jiménez Monterroza
- Region: Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca
- Agave: Arroqueño
- ABV: 53%
- Price: $70 ($$)
Verdict
53% is the proof that makes arroqueño behave, most producers undersell at 45-47% and the agave reads flat as a result. El Buho's decision to commit the proof is what earns the bottle its premium tier. Every element is present at full intensity: mineral spine, honey mid-palate, long-maturation bitterness. Buy it; high-proof arroqueño this articulate is rare.
High-proof arroqueño at El Buho caliber is what the agave sounds like at full volume
Tasting notes
Nose: Dark honey – then warm leather, bay leaf, hot stone
Palate: Dense and concentrated at 53%. The high proof gives arroqueño's natural weight the structural support it wants, this is the agave expressed at its proper scale, not the diluted mid-tier versions
Finish: Unending. Drying, warm, mineral, with a slow leather fade
The bottom line
Track it down as a reference high-proof arroqueño
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 2 US retailers. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.
- Saratoga Wine
- Old Town Tequila – $99.99