Reviews / Mal Bien Borrego

Review · · by The Editors

Mal Bien Borrego

Papalote labeled 'borrego' – one of Mal Bien's specialty bottlings from Antonio Sonido

Score: 4.5/5 agaves

Mal Bien Borrego bottle
  • Producer: Mal Bien
  • Maestro: Antonio Sonido
  • Region: Chilapa de Álvarez, Guerrero
  • Agave: Papalote
  • ABV: 49.5%
  • Price: $65 ($)

Verdict

Most importers translate regional names into Oaxacan defaults; Mal Bien leaves 'borrego' on the label because that's what the producer calls it. Antonio Sonido's Guerrero papalote at 49.5% delivers the state's drier, more mineral register, and the naming itself is the ethical signal. Respect the producer's vocabulary and the bottle usually respects you back.

Papalote from outside Oaxaca is worth the hunt

Tasting notes

Nose: Wildflower, dark fruit, warm earth

Palate: Dense and aromatic at 49.5% – the Guerrero papalote character, concentrated

Finish: Very long, drying, warm

The bottom line

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