Reviews / El Destilado Barril - Espadin

Review · · by The Editors

El Destilado Barril - Espadin

Barril-and-espadín ensamble – the quiet format done well

Score: 4.0/5 agaves

El Destilado Barril - Espadin bottle
  • Producer: El Destilado
  • Maestro: Rene Parada Barriga
  • Region: Zimatlán de Álvarez, Oaxaca
  • Agave: Barril, Espadin
  • ABV: 47.7%
  • Price: $70 ($$)

Verdict

El Destilado's house style is legibility, no one flavor asking for credit, everything in focus. Rene Parada Barriga's barril/espadín reads like a study in restraint, the kind of ensamble that explains why NETA and Mal Bien kept trying similar formats. If you already liked the Banhez ensamble, step up here.

El Destilado's house style is legibility – no one flavor asking for credit

Tasting notes

Nose: Green pepper, wet hay, lime pith, a light cooked-agave sweetness

Palate: The barril's vegetal lift crosses the espadín's cooked sugar without either winning, clean, legible, 47.7% keeping the aromatics from collapsing

Finish: Medium-long, green, mineral

The bottom line

Buy if you want ensamble done without theatrics

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