Reviews / Monte Alban Mezcal Con Gusano
Review · · by The Editors
Monte Alban Mezcal Con Gusano
The bottle with the worm – exactly that, no more
Score: 1.5/5 agaves
- Producer: Monte Alban
- Maestro: Destiladora Gonzalez
- Region: Oaxaca
- Agave: Espadin
- ABV: 40%
- Price: $31 ($)
Verdict
Monte Alban is the bottle that fifty years of American bartenders used to define what mezcal wasn't, a gusano-novelty liquid made for shot glasses on spring-break menus. Destiladora Gonzalez isn't making mezcal here; they're making a souvenir. Eleven reviewers at 1.2 is deserved. If you own a bottle, it's for the decoration or the dare. Pour Vida instead and taste what an honest commercial mezcal looks like.
The worm doesn't fix anything. Sometimes it lets you know the producer knew
Tasting notes
Nose: Paint thinner, corn syrup, faint smoke, a musty accent from the worm
Palate: 40% industrial espadín with a gusano in the bottom, thin, chemically sweet, the kind of mezcal that created mezcal's bad reputation
Finish: Metallic, regrettable – short
The bottom line
Avoid. The worm is the entire proposition
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 2 US retailers. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.