Reviews / Erstwhile Henequén
Review · · by The Editors
Erstwhile Henequén
Henequén at 45%. The Yucatán fiber agave distilled, and a category-edge vocabulary word
Score: 4.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Erstwhile Mezcal
- Maestro: Juan Hernández Méndez
- Region: Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca
- Agave: Henequén
- ABV: 45%
- Price: $70 ($)
Verdict
Hunt this down if you want an education in what the Yucatán peninsula can do – henequén is lean by constitution and 45% is exactly enough, which is the opposite of the usual proof argument. One of the handful of legitimate henequén bottles on the US market, and the only one Erstwhile's discipline vouches for. Consensus 4.0 is earned.
Henequén is a category-edge vocabulary word that deserves wider circulation
Tasting notes
Nose: Pine with dry hay, a faint floral high note, trace of green herb underneath
Palate: Lean and distinctly different from Oaxacan mezcal at 45%. Henequén is the same plant used for rope in the Yucatán, and the distillate has a dry-grass, northern character that reads more like a Sonoran bacanora than a Oaxacan mezcal
Finish: Cooling, mineral, with a slow pine fade – very long
The bottom line
A category-broadening bottle worth hunting
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 4 US retailers. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.
- Caskers
- Old Town Tequila
- Flaviar – $139.99
- ReserveBar