Reviews / Mal Bien Espadin - Cortes
Review · · by The Editors
Mal Bien Espadin - Cortes
The Cortés espadín is the one to trust
Score: 4.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Mal Bien
- Maestro: Ageo Cortés, Felipe Cortés
- Region: Miahuatlán, Oaxaca
- Agave: Espadin
- ABV: 48.5%
- Price: $55 ($)
Verdict
Mal Bien's Cortés-brothers espadín is the anti-Amaras – same price tier, different universe. At 48.5% through a refrescador still, the angustifolia actually gets to speak, and the bottle delivers genuine mezcal shape at what most brands charge for marketing. If you want one Mal Bien bottle on the shelf, this is the everyday one.
Espadín with a spine, priced sanely
Tasting notes
Nose: Cooked agave with a green pepper, fresh hay, faint mineral smoke
Palate: 48.5% of refrescador espadín with a structural spine most commercial espadines can't touch – Ageo and Felipe Cortés know exactly where to cut
Finish: Clean, slightly saline – long
The bottom line
The everyday Mal Bien. Buy it by the case