Cabal Mezcal Salmiana Jaguar Head (75cl, 55%)

A joven mezcal from Cabal, bottled at 55% ABV from 14-year-old Salmiana agave grown in the deserts of San Luis Potosí. The agave is steam-cooked for seven days in a 200-year-old brick-and-stone oven over sabine wood, double-macerated in tahona pits, fermented with pulque and double-distilled in a 200-year-old copper still. It is vegetal, peppery and fiercely agave-driven. Per retailers, the nose shows crisp green bell pepper, fresh-cut grass and lemon peel. The palate brings cooked Salmiana with olive, serrano pepper and a creamy mouthfeel, leading to a long finish of lemon zest, green poblano and elegant vegetal spice. Best enjoyed neat, with a drop of water to open the aromatics.