Ensamble Madrecuixe + Jabalín | May 2019 | Celso García Cruz | ENNCEL1905 | Winter 2022 Release | 102 bottles

The label of this phenomenal field blend from Celso García Cruz reads as an ensamble of Madrecuixe and Jabalín, but only after bottling and further discussion with the Maestro was it revealed that six piñas of cultivated Coyote were also included in the mix. The single sabino wood fermentation vat contained 200kg of wild harvested Jabalín, 200kg of homegrown Madrecuixe, and 100kg of homegrown Coyote from red cascajo soil that resulted in a unique combination of flavors and aromas that can never be repeated in quite the same fashion. 

Don Celso has experimented with Jabalín on many occasions, but in light of its elevated saponin content and foamy fermentations and cloudy distillation, he now prefers mixing these agaves with other species, as to alleviate some of these unpleasant complications. Madrecuixe remains a staple of the region and is the most common endemic cultivar around Logoche and San Luis Amatlán. While it is often used in the composition of ensambles, this is the first time we have encountered this combination of agaves. Until the last decade, the hybrid agaves known as Coyote in Miahuatlán were almost exclusively found in the wild, in the cross section of populations of Tobala and large Agave karwinskii plants (particularly the Madrecuixe in the San Luis Amatlán region surrounding Logoche), preferring rocky terrain with good drainage. In Logoche, producers have recently begun cultivating Coyote, and have found that the plants often mature in just four or five years. This experimental batch has been selected by Astor Wines and Spirits, with 102 bottles in production.

§  Maguey(es): Mix of guía and capón agaves; 200kg Madrecuixe, 300kg Jabalín, 100kg Coyote

§  Provenance of the maguey: Mix of homegrown and wild-harvested

§  Producer: Celso García Cruz

§  Region: Logoche, Miahuatlán

§  Soil type: Madrecuixe and Coyote from one red and rocky cascajo rojo parcel and Jabalín from a wild stretch of cascajo rojo nearby.

§  Rest time after harvest: Five days approx.

§  Oven: Conical earthen pit; five days with mesquite and oak

§  Rest time after oven: Five days

§  Maceration: Machete and shredder

§  Fermentation: Native yeasts, one 1200L capacity Montezuma cypress sabino wood tank

§  Dry fermentation time: 8 days

§  Wet fermentation time: 48 hours

§  Distillation: 2x in copper pot stills

§  Final composition: Heads, hearts, and tails

§  Batch size: 80L

§  Date of distillation: April 2019

§  ABV: 47.7%