Reviews / Real Minero Largo, Espadin, San Martinero, Madrecuishe

Review · · by The Editors

Real Minero Largo, Espadin, San Martinero, Madrecuishe

Four agaves at 56.6% – the proof ceiling where Real Minero still reads integrated

Score: 4.5/5 agaves

Real Minero Largo, Espadin, San Martinero, Madrecuishe bottle
  • Producer: Real Minero
  • Maestro: Edgar Angeles
  • Region: Santa Catarina Minas, Oaxaca
  • Agave: Espadin, Largo, Madrecuishe, San Martinero
  • ABV: 56.6%
  • Price: $200 ($$)

Verdict

Four agaves at 56.6% should read as too much proof, and in most producers' hands it would. Edgar Ángeles knows how to fold that heat into structure – san martinero and madrecuishe in particular are the two karwinskii that demand above 50% to carry their full herbal-mineral character. Lalocura works in this register; almost no one else reaches it without losing the agave. The aged-in-glass decade quiets everything that needed quieting.

56.6% that still tastes like a decision, not a display

Tasting notes

Nose: Warm stone, green herb, cooked agave, a whiff of menthol

Palate: Powerful and precise at 56.6%, san martinero and madrecuishe's karwinskii rigor holding their ground against espadín's body and largo's lift. No consensus on this one; we read it at 4.5 because the proof has not overwhelmed the integration

Finish: Mineral, warming. Very long

The bottom line

Buy it if you find it – a reference-level ensamble

More from Real Minero