Reviews / Paquera Arroqueño
Review · · by The Editors
Paquera Arroqueño
Arroqueño at 50%. The agave getting its proof
Score: 4.0/5 agaves
- Producer: Paquera Mezcal
- Maestro: Teodolo Vasquez
- Region: Ejutla, Oaxaca
- Agave: Arroqueño
- ABV: 50%
- Price: $70 ($$)
Verdict
Paquera's arroqueño sits in the good-not-great tier – cleanly made, honestly proofed, with all the species' markers present without quite reaching the concentration the best examples manage. Reach for it when the Papadiablo isn't available, or when you want a shade more accessible entry point into the agave.
Arroqueño at 50% has room to develop – most under-proofed arroqueños don't
Tasting notes
Nose: Dark fruit – then cocoa, wet earth, a mineral top
Palate: 50% of arroqueño delivered with cooked-fruit sweetness, flinty weight, and the slow unfolding this species asks for. Less extracted than the Papadiablo version, still legibly itself
Finish: Warming, earthy. Stays long
The bottom line
Reach for it as an accessible arroqueño. Buy Papadiablo for the ceiling