Tosba Arroqueno

Verdict

Edgar Gonzalez has built Tosba into one of the most consistently honest producers in Oaxaca, and the arroqueño is the bottle that proves it. Ten to fifteen years in the ground and it shows – this has the gravity that separates great arroqueño from merely good. Between this and Lalocura's arroqueño, the agave has the two references it needs. Availability comes and goes, so decide in advance.

Tasting notes

Nose: Dark chocolate, then dried fig, tobacco leaf, warm earth

Palate: Dense, oily, deeply savory – arroqueño's characteristic bass note holding the mid-palate while a cocoa-and-leather sweetness builds behind it. Proof isn't listed but the density reads like high 40s

Finish: Warming, mineral. Very long

The bottom line

Snag one when it appears. A reference arroqueño