Reviews / Maguey Melate Pichomel - Noel Negrellos Ortega

Review · · by The Editors

Maguey Melate Pichomel - Noel Negrellos Ortega

Noel Negrellos Ortega – the other Puebla pichomel worth tracking

Score: 4.0/5 agaves

Maguey Melate Pichomel - Noel Negrellos Ortega bottle
  • Producer: Maguey Melate
  • Maestro: Noel Negrellos Ortega
  • Region: San Luis Atolotitlan, Puebla
  • Agave: Pichomel
  • ABV: 46.5%
  • Price: $70 ($)

Verdict

Track Noel Negrellos Ortega's pichomel next to Ildefonso's, both Puebla, different registers, same caliber of respect for the wild agave. Hunt both; the Melate Club picked a pair. Closer to what Don Fede accomplished across his Puebla catalog than most cross-state releases. A state that deserves more shelf space than it gets.

The gentler Puebla pichomel – still unmistakably Puebla

Tasting notes

Nose: Green melon with dry earth, faint smoke

Palate: Copper at 46.5% – Noel Negrellos Ortega runs his pichomel at a more moderate proof than Ildefonso's, and the agave reads accordingly gentler. The Puebla terroir still shows in the dry-earth edge

Finish: Warming, honeyed, long

The bottom line

The gentler Puebla pichomel. Hunt as a pair with Ildefonso's

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