Tepextate | April 2023 | Tomás García Cruz | TPXTGC2304 | Summer 2024 release | 480 bottles

Unlike other parts of Oaxaca where Tepextate production has become commonplace in response to consumer demand, this maguey has always been used in Logoche and many nearby villages in Miahuatlán. Being a low-yielding and difficult to harvest wild agave, the spirits made from these plants were previously often regarded as a “poor man’s drink”- even within the context of the socio-economic and racist stigma held over mezcal in general. Today, Tepextate has become one of the most prized magueyes in all of Oaxaca but its use in spirits production in Logoche is a true reflection of the gastronomic traditions of the region.

Don Tomás García Cruz and his sons Juan, Nicolás, and Eleasar dedicated multiple days surround the full moon of March 2023 to harvesting the 125 piñas of fully ripe and capón Tepextate that was used to make this relatively large batch that was distilled and composed in the following month of April.  A single liter of distillate made from this low-sugar and slow-maturing maguey can require anywhere from 25kg-70kg of the (raw) plant and given its scarcity and difficulty to access ecosystem, it is unusual to see large productions that are not homogenized and or composed of liquid that has been sourced from different places.

 The entire harvest of 10 tons of Tepextate from adjacent lands of rocky and limestone-rich, white terrain Santa Cruz Monjas was roasted in a single oven over six days before being unearthed and rested before maceration with a tractor-drawn tahona.The fibers and juices were collected and left to ferment in seven different Montezuma cypress vats for a total of eleven days. Given the quantity of agave and the limited amount of fermentation vessels and stills, the fermentation and fist round of distillation was staggered in multiple rounds over the course of eleven days. After working through all of the mash, nearly 1000 liter of low wines, known as shishe or ordinario, at around 18% ABV were collected and rested for two days before being refined for a second distillation. After a careful composition of heads, hearts, and tails, the family produced a total of 365 liters at 47.8% ABV.

§  Maguey(es): Tepextate Capón

§  Provenance of the maguey: La Jamaica parcel in neighboring Santa Cruz

§  Producer: Tomás García Cruz and sons

§  Region: Logoche, Miahuatlán

§  Soil type: white and rocky montaña pedregosa

§  Rest time after harvest: six days

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

§  Rest time after oven: three days

§  Maceration: tractor-drawn stone mill

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

§  Dry fermentation time: 72 hours

§  Wet fermentation time: nine days

§  Distillation: 2x in copper pot stills

§  Final composition: Heads, hearts, and tails

§  Batch size: 365 liters

§  Date of distillation: April 2023

§  ABV: 47.8%

MARIE NAKAZAWA