Reviews / Origen Raiz Con Pecho de Venado
Review · · by The Editors
Origen Raiz Con Pecho de Venado
Venison pechuga on cenizo – Durango answering Oaxaca's pechuga tradition
Score: 4.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Origen Raiz del Espiritu Mezcal
- Maestro: Valentin Cortes
- Region: Tuitán, Durango
- Agave: Cenizo
- ABV: 50%
- Price: $70 ($$)
Verdict
Pechuga de venado is a format Durango producers have quietly been doing as well as anyone in Oaxaca, and this is the evidence. Origen Raíz matched a savory distillate to a base that could hold it – cenizo's herbal muscle means the venison isn't fighting a sweet espadín. Reach for it if you've worn out poultry pechugas and want to know what the category looks like when producers commit.
The rare pechuga where the meat isn't just decoration
Tasting notes
Nose: Roasted meat, then dark herbs, cedar smoke, cocoa, dried chile
Palate: Cenizo carries the savory register better than espadín, and at 50% this bottle has room to stack cooked-agave sweetness under the gamey top. The venison reads, without caricature
Finish: Warming, distinctly savory – long
The bottom line
Reach for it. The best non-Oaxaca pechuga we've tasted under the Durango banner
Where to buy online
We found this bottle at 1 US retailer. Prices and stock vary – click through to check.