Bringing back a family tradition
Santa Catarina Minas Oaxaca is one the richest towns in terms of ancestral mezcal heritage. There is always something to learn when talking to the families there, usually over unending tastes from impressive portfolios of top notch spirits. Such was the scene at the palenque of Pasión Ancestral Mezcal with maestro mezcalero Alexis Canales Angeles.
I first met Alexis at Mexico In A Bottle Durango, at the end of the night just before wrapping up, when more than a few trusted companions urged me to taste what they considered to be some of the best mezcal at the event. I rushed over to the table and found Alexis, smiling humbly, and happy to share as much as I could taste. The mezcals did not disappoint, offering strong and clean flavors of Oaxaca agaves and the much loved ancestral production style with clay distillation that Minas is known for.
A few weeks later a friend and I followed up to spend the afternoon at his palenque in Oaxaca. In the typical way, he and his family welcomed us to their production space which was directly behind their family home. The air was full of smoke amid a light rain, and we shuffled between the tasting area and the stills, where Alexis and his brother were tending to a first distillation of fermented agave. It was an idyllic backdrop to listen to Alexis tell the story of the brand.
In 2021 Alexis was looking for work as a lawyer, but couldn’t find anything. At the same time, he became fixated on reviving the family legacy of mezcal. He knew the stories of his Great Grandfather, Juan Colmenares Arango, a local legend for his mezcal.
What makes ancestral mezcal, ancestral?
While many brands can trace an unbroken thread of mezcal production for over a hundred years, there are more than a few brands of mezcal that make “ancestral” mezcal without having any mezcal producing ancestors. Alexis asked us, “How can you have ancestral mezcal without having ancestors?” In Alexis’ case, there was a generational gap in production (his grandfather made mezcal but his father did not), but, as is so prevalent in Minas in particular, he has a strong direct connection to a long line of ancestors who dedicated themselves to and were renowned for making traditional mezcal.
He implored his family to band together and claim their rightful place among traditional mezcal producers in Minas. The family was interested, but there were real hurdles as there are for any family looking to build their own brand- the first one being how to get capital to build a palenque and start a brand. Eventually it was decided that Alexis would migrate to the USA to work and send money home to fund the early stages of the project. At the eleventh hour, a bank loan came through that meant he could stay in Oaxaca with his family and start building the palenque.
Alexis recalls one moment where the light at the end of the tunnel began to appear: “After spending 3 months making mezcal and continuing to ask for bank loans for expenses, the opportunity for an event in Mexico City presented itself. I wrote to the organizer of Maestros De Mezcal and he opened the doors for me to participate. I had my doubts about going because no one knew me, no one knew the brand, and I had to ask for more money to make the trip. At the event I only had 3 boxes of mezcal and although I struggled, only accepting cash and with no one willing to accept card payments for me, I still managed to sell out. That event was a very big step, I met many people from the industry who since then have been friends and continue to prefer Pasion Ancestral.”
Determined to connect with his own lineage, Alexis approached his great uncle, Rufino Felipe Martinez, who he describes as a cultural treasure of mezcal with more than 70 years experience distilling. He agreed to teach Alexis how to make mezcal, and just as Rufino learned to make mezcal in Palenque de la Presa which was Alexis’ great grandfather’s, the wisdom was passed down to Alexis in Rufino’s palenque.
It really takes a village, or at least a family, and there was a steep learning curve with costly lessons once Alexis started producing out of his own palenque built behind the family home. More than once they endured losses while leaving someone else in charge of distillation so he could attend events to promote the brand. These days, only he or a family member tends to the distillation.
The care he takes to ensure every detail is optimized is well worth it and impressive. Between sipping and tending to the stills he showed us how he checks every cooked piña , removing any spots that are not 100% pristine. This labor intensive process is skipped by most people, understandably, it takes a ton of time and reduces the overall yield. The charred and rotten bits can often create bitterness or other unwanted flavors in the final spirit, so even though this lessens the amount to be fermented and distilled, it is a worthwhile step for Alexis; removing these bits from the pinas is no doubt a contributing factor to the stunning precision of flavor in the resulting spirits.
The process is ancestral not only in spirit but according to current mezcal guidelines: with open air natural yeast fermentation, hand crushing, and clay pot distillation. His family has become more involved, and he even has some batches that were made with his mom. The pride in her face was obvious, as she showed off the room in their house that had become the mezcal resting room and Alexis’ office.
The lineup of Pasión Ancestral mezcal is extensive and one is more enticing than the next. A limited selection of expressions will be imported to the USA soon. Alexis and his family are active participants in mezcal tasting events all over Mexico where you can also taste and purchase their very limited bottlings.
*To track these new developments, you can follow the brand on Instagram.
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