Madrecuixe de soca | October 2023 | Hugo García Maldonado | MDXHGO2310 | Summer 2024 release | 150 bottles

There exist a multitude of different types of Agave karwinskii throughout the Zapotec territories of Oaxaca that are all identified by the colloquial name, Madrecuixe. In the town of San Luis Amatlán, Miahuatlán, and in adjacent communities, Madrecuixe refers to a specific and highly prized heirloom cultivar that is unique to the region.

This batch was made by Hugo García Maldonado and produced a medias with a local farmer using the mature sucker plants or offsets from a field of Madrecuixe known as “Madrecuixe de soca”. While under ideal conditions, these plants can grow to weigh over 200lbs in under eight years, because these plants came from a relatively neglected parcel, their growth was stunted and the plants remained small. Harvested en guía just before the spouting of the quiote, Hugo estimated the age of the agaves to be between 15 and 20 years old, based on the growth of trees and shrubs that had overtaken the land.

After unearthing the roasted maguey, Hugo broke the piñas down with a machete before passing the caramelized chunks through a shredder. Two of the fermentation vats required water 24 hours later, while another two, needed an additional day before the were deemed ready to be formulated with well water. The weather and temperatures at this time in October 2023 fluctuated between hot and cold and wet and dry, creating somewhat undesirable conditions for the ferments. For this reason, Hugo attributed a relatively low yield of 240 liters from a total of nearly 4000kg of Madrecuixe de soca. Half of the production was shared with the landowner of the Potrerito parcel where the agave was harvested, and the remaining 120 liters were bottled for this special release. We selected this batch because of its stellar prototypical attributes, but also because telling the story behind its production provides a glimpse into the agricultural, environmental, and cultural elements that all contribute to creating such a remarkable spirit.

§  Maguey(es): Madrecuixe (Agave karwinskii var.)

§  Provenance of the maguey: a medias; Potrerito parcel

§  Producer: Hugo García Maldonado

§  Region: Logoche, Miahuatlán

§  Soil type: rocky and white tierra blanca pedregosa

§  Rest time after harvest: four days

§  Oven: Conical earthen pit; fourteen days with mesquite wood

§  Rest time after oven: 14 days

§  Maceration: Machete and shredder

§  Fermentation: Native yeasts; four 1200L Montezuma cypress sabino wood tanks with approximately 600kg of cooked agave and 500L of well water

§  Dry fermentation time: 24-48 hours

§  Wet fermentation time: nine days

§  Distillation: 2x in copper pot stills

§  Final composition: Heads, hearts, and tails

§  Batch size: 240L

§  Date of distillation: October 2023

§ ABV: 46.1%

MARIE NAKAZAWA