Tobalá + Coyote | November 2022 | Eliazar García Vásquez | ENNEGV2211 | Summer 2024 release | 42 bottles | Atla NY

Made with just 20 piñas of Tobalá and 10 piñas of Coyote, this field blend of wild maguey represents a long-standing distillation tradition carried on today by a younger generation of dedicated producers. Eleazar harvested approximately 500kg of mostly capón and wild growing Tobalá and Coyote from a hilly, white, and rocky parcel of his wife’s family land in neighboring San Luis Amatlán. Closely related and morphologically similar, these two magueyes often inhabit the same spaces in Miahuatlán. Interestingly, the Coyote agave of this immediate region is evidently the product of natural hybridization conducted by the various bats, hummingbirds, and bees that feed off the nectar of the agave plant’s flowers. As such found in the wild in the borderlands between large Agave karwinskii types and the Tobalá hybrid complex comprised of an ever-evolving mix of both A. potatorum and A. seemanniana types.

Eliazar’s November 2022 production of this classic wild agave combo is a loud reflection of the lands, practices, and gastronomic traditions of the southeastern edge of the Valley of Miahuatlán. It’s arid terrain and limestone rich soil is eminent on both the nose and the palate and provides a terrific sense of place and regionality. Carefully adjusting with a mix of heads, heats, and high-proof tails, Eleazar composed a total of 38 liters at 45.9% ABV. This small batch was selected as an exclusive batch split between ATLA in New York City.

§  Maguey(es): Tobalá and Coyote

§  Provenance of the maguey: wild maguey from San Luis Amatlán

§  Producer: Eleazar García Vásquez

§  Region: Logoche, Miahuatlán

§  Soil type: White and rocky tierra blanca

§  Rest time after harvest: eight days

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

§  Rest time after oven: seven days

§  Maceration: Machete and shredder

§  Fermentation: Native yeasts and well water; one 1200L Montezuma cypress sabino wood tank

§  Dry fermentation time: 24 hours

§  Wet fermentation time: 12 days

§  Distillation: 2x in copper pot stills

§  Final composition: Heads, hearts, and tails

§  Batch size: 38L

§  Date of distillation: November 2022

§  ABV: 45.9% ABV