Rancho Vale Madre Añejo: Straight and Mixed

This month’s booze reviews kicked off with a rum: the Amrut Two Indies. Though this was not planned, it ended up becoming a non-whisky month, with two reviews of French brandies following: an Armagnac from Cardinat and a Calvados from Toutain. To close out the month, I have a mezcal. This represents novelty for me in two ways: this is a mezcal from a producer I have not previously encountered, and it is an añejo, having been matured in oak casks for at least a year. The producer is Rancho Vale Madre in Oaxaca. My friend Ben visited the distillery in February and very kindly brought me back this bottle. Unlike mezcals released in the US, this is a fairly bare bones label: there’s no detail of any kind on the production method or the variety of agave used; indeed, not even the abv/strength is noted (though I am pretty sure it’s around 40%). I was very curious to try it as the word on the American mezcal enthusiast street is not very positive on oak cask-aged mezcals in general. The thinking is that the quintessential qualities of mezcal are best expressed in joven/blanco spirit that has been “aged” only in glass. I’ve no idea what the status of añejo and reposado mezcals in Mexico more broadly or Oaxaca in particular is. Nor do I know very much about Rancho Vale Madre beyond the fact that they seem to a popular stop on mezcal tours in Oaxaca; the estimable Mezcal Reviews site does not list any of their releases. Anyway, as you’ll see below, while I enjoyed this añejo fine on its own, I think I will probably finish most of the bottle via cocktails.

Rancho Vale Madre, Añejo (from my own bottle)

Nose: Lime, salt and just a bit of a vegetal undertow. No change really worth noting with time.

Palate: Pretty much as advertised by the nose. A good drinking strength; the texture is a bit thin. Peppery on subsequent sips.

Finish: Medium. The lime expands first but the salt has the last word. With time it’s a bit vinegary.

Comment: A decent mezcal to have on hand for when you want that agave hit but don’t want to contemplate your pour. But it’s not going to take the place of the joven/blanco mezcal I normally drink. Now, as you’ll see below, I like it more in cocktail form and I expect I will run a number of mixing experiments with it.

Rating: 80 points (as a sipper).

Oaxacan Firing Squad