Mal Bien Felipe and Ageo Cortes Tepextate – Tasting Notes

This will expand your understanding of tepextate.

• Location: Mengoli de Morelos
• Agave: Tepextate
• Maestro Mezcalero: Felipe and Ageo Cortes
• Quantity: 266 bottles
• ABV: 50.2
• Buy it today

Nose

It conjures such a distinct sensation of dusty landscapes with little hints of a sugary and herbal perfume.

Taste

So light and distinctive, this tepextate is all about subtlety. I get some chocolate notes but it feels like aphasia, there are flavors that are constantly presenting themselves and then disappearing before you can label them: A not so subtle reminder that this is to be experienced and not described. It’s not your normal tepextate, it will take you on a little trip through what mezcal can be.

Background

Ageo Cortes is something of a magician in the distilling field. His madrecuixe in the Maguey Melate Signature Box was impressive. He also has an awesome name from the old testament which hints at his allegiances to tradition. Importer and brand co-creator Ben Scott told me “Fun fact: Ageo’s mother Cecilia Sanchez is the sister of Emanuel Ramos’s mother Cleotilde Sanchez who is Victor Ramos’s wife.” That’s a great reminder of how tight knit many mezcal communities are and how distilling wisdom is transmitted.