photos - mezcal trip

[low_delta]

Here is our host, the maestro Evodio, with Dave.


Fields where the maguey (agave) grow. the species is agave, but they call it maguey, unless it's the blue agave, which is used to make tequila.


I saw this field down the road. These plants are much larger than any on Evodio's farm.



Different varities of maguey make different varieties of mezcal.






Here's a picture I found online of someone harvesting the maguey. They cut all the leaves off and chop it down, leaving the piña, or heart.


Here is a load of piñas in a truck.



They build a fire in the pit and heat up the rocks. Then they pile in a couple tons of the maguey hearts (piñas) and let them simmer for a few days.




Then they pull them out, put them in this trough, and mash them with this mallet.


Here's the fermentation vat. They toss in all the mashed piñas and let them sit until they are fermented, usually five days.



Evodio has two stills. They're made of clay. This (with a few other factors) means his style of production can qualify as Ancestral.






We stopped at another palenque.


This shows their roasting pit, and in the back, you can see the stone wheel (a tahona) they use to mash the piñas.

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