Here’s one more mezcal to close out the month in booze reviews. This is my second review of a mezcal from Real Minero, the storied Oaxacan operation. I’ve previously reviewed a batch of their Barril, which I enjoyed very much indeed. This week I have for you a review of a batch of their Largo. Largo is a variety of wild agave, apparently also known as Tobaziche in other areas. This batch was made from agave that averaged 14 years of age at the time of harvest. It was distilled in January 2023 in Filipino-style clay pot stills. All this information is from the rear label on the bottle, by the way. The Barril’s rear label notes it was rested in glass for six months before bottling; there’s no indication of resting in glass on the label of this Largo. I’m not sure which is the normal practice for Real Minero, or for that matter for mezcal producers more broadly. If you know more about this please write in below. I can tell you that I opened this bottle last week and it jumped right to the top of my not very extensive mezcal rankings. Here now are my tasting notes.

Real Minero, Largo (49.1%; Batch DRML-26; from my own bottle)

Nose: Ashy smoke, damp leaves and earth, a bit of green bell pepper, some salt. With more time the lime from the palate shows up on the nose but here it’s preserved lime. A bit of parmesan rind now as well. With a drop of water the lactic note turns creamy

Palate: Comes in as indicated by the nose but the smoke is more powerful here. A very good drinking strength and texture. The ash expands with each sip, picking up some bitter lime peel and a touch of cracked pepper; the vegetal note is a bit more pronounced as well. More acidic with time and especially with a drop of water.

Finish: Long. The smoke and salt expand with the latter having the last word. As on the palate with time and water.

Comments: A mezcal for fans of Islay peat. I said of the Real Minero Barril that it was a reminiscent of an extra-peaty Longrow. Well, this one has me thinking of Ardbeg. It’s better than any Ardbeg released in the last decade or more that I’ve had though. The reviews of other batches on Mezcal Reviews has me thinking this was an unusually smoky batch.

Rating: 91 points.