Reviews / Nucano Anejo

Review · · by The Editors

Nucano Anejo

Mezcal añejo as a category remains a mistake, and this doesn't argue otherwise

Score: 2.5/5 agaves

Nucano Anejo bottle
  • Producer: Nucano Mezcal
  • Maestro: Don Carlos
  • Region: San Dionisio Ocotepec, Oaxaca
  • Agave: Espadin
  • ABV: 40%
  • Price: $59 ($)

Verdict

Three-to-five years in white oak sands every edge off the espadín until what's left is the barrel. Nucano isn't doing anything unusual here, the añejo category mostly produces bottles that taste like someone tried to turn mezcal into whiskey and kept most of the tax. Skip toward a joven from the same house, where the agave actually shows up.

If you wanted bourbon you would have bought bourbon

Tasting notes

Nose: Vanilla, oak char, cherry cough syrup, a memory of smoke

Palate: White-oak aging at 40% turns the espadín into something that lands as budget bourbon with a roasted undertone. The agave is a rumor

Finish: Sweet, wooden. Short

The bottom line

Skip the añejo. Buy a joven espadín from a producer who trusts the liquid

Where to buy online

We found this bottle at 1 US retailer. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.

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