Reviews / Fanekantsini Sierra Negra y Arroqueño
Review · · by The Editors
Fanekantsini Sierra Negra y Arroqueño
Sosima Olivera's sierra negra-arroqueño at 50%. Benchmark-level Jalisco, and one of the bottles that argues the mezcal conversation needs to expand past Oaxaca
Score: 5.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Fanekantsini
- Maestro: Sosima Olivera
- Region: San Francisco Sola, Oaxaca
- Agave: Arroqueño, Sierra Negra
- ABV: 50%
- Price: $65 ($$)
Verdict
Buy this to prove to yourself that the US mezcal conversation shouldn't stay in Oaxaca – Sosima Olivera's sierra-negra-and-arroqueño ensamble is the bottle that makes the Jalisco case without raising its voice. Every element is on-purpose, and the regional profile stays preserved from nose to finish. Consensus 5.0 is earned; this is reference work at a price that almost embarrasses the Oaxacan establishment.
Fanekantsini is Jalisco at the category's upper bound
Tasting notes
Nose: Dark honey, then warm earth, wildflower, hot stone, dry herb, a faint leather undertone
Palate: Fully expressed at 50% – two dense wild agaves in coherent conversation. Sosima Olivera's production discipline rivals the top Oaxacan maestros, and the bottle drinks like it: the sierra negra's mineral austerity and the arroqueño's honeyed weight don't compete, they build on each other
Finish: Endless. Drying, warm, limestone, with a slow honey-earth fade
The bottom line
Top-tier work. Take it when you see it