Sin Gusano Tobaziche - Minas

Verdict

Félix Ángeles Arellanes is one of Santa Catarina Minas's reference mezcaleros, and his tobaziche lands as a demonstration of what clay pots do to karwinskii. The proof is lower than the Amatengo version but the clay contributes weight the alcohol doesn't have to. This is a Minas bottle first, a tobaziche second – the hierarchy is correct. Consensus has no number; reading at 4.0.

Tasting notes

Nose: Wet clay, green herb, mineral smoke, a thread of cracked pepper

Palate: 44.1% carries Minas's clay-pot tradition – oily texture, slate-tinged through-line, the tobaziche's licorice depth held by the barro signature instead of displaced by it

Finish: Earthy, herbal – long

The bottom line

Minas tradition, honestly rendered. Buy it when seen