Mala Mia Cuishe

Verdict

Saturnino Martínez Méndez can clearly make mezcal, but 41% for cuishe is a proof decision that hobbles the bottle. The Mala Mía range leans toward commercial ABVs and this cuishe is the cost of that decision, an agave with real character reduced to background music. Pass and look at Cortés' Mal Bien cuishe range instead.

Tasting notes

Nose: Wet grass, faint pepper, soft mineral

Palate: 41% is well below where karwinskii delivers, the cuishe character reads faintly, the bottle drinks more like a low-proof agave spirit than a mezcal with anything to say

Finish: Soft, fades

The bottom line

Skip. Cuishe needs proof to speak