Reviews / Mal Bien Alto
Review · · by The Editors
Mal Bien Alto
Alto from Michoacán – Mal Bien branching beyond Oaxaca
Score: 4.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Agave Mixtape, Mal Bien
- Maestro: Isidro Rodriguez Montoya
- Region: Rio de Parras, Michoacán
- Agave: Alto
- ABV: 46.58%
- Price: $150 ($$)
Verdict
Mal Bien's Michoacán bottling is a strong case for paying attention to the state – a region that US specialty importers underrepresent relative to Oaxaca. Alto agave renders differently in Michoacán than the closest Oaxacan analogs (cuishe, bicuishe) would suggest: drier, pinier, more mineral, with a northern austerity Oaxacan wild agaves don't produce. At 46.58% the producer's discipline carries the regional signature clearly. Reviewer consensus aligns. Geographic range is the Mal Bien thesis.
Geographic range is the Mal Bien thesis
Tasting notes
Nose: Pine, warm earth, faint smoke, dry hay
Palate: Lean and northern at 46.58% – the alto reads cleanly, less aggressive than Oaxacan wild agaves
Finish: Cooling, dry – long
The bottom line
The Mal Bien for drinkers who know the Oaxaca catalog cold
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 2 US retailers. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.