Clase Azul Mezcal Durango

Not everyone can be an artist; nor can all Mexican spirits be tequila. This drink, the best known in mariachi country (a cliché, we know), is only made from blue agave, a species of the agavaceae that grows specifically in Jalisco (western Mexico). Tequila is like a denomination of origin, a guarantee of the origin of the raw material. In the rest of the state, which is filled with other agave species, the same procedures and production methods are used, but instead the spirit is known as mezcal. On this occasion Clase Azul, the renowned tequila producer, travels to the northern state of Durango to produce Clase Azul Mezcal Durango.

Clase Azul Mezcal Durango is made from the agave cenizo, another species of the agavaceae, which is much wilder and abounds in the state of Durango on mineral soil and surrounded by natural springs, resulting in a complex and unique drink.

The production process is identical to the one used in Jalisco for tequila. Firstly, it is time for the jima, the name given to the work done by jimadores (people who work in the fields) where the agaves are harvested. This plant, with lots of very long leaves (known as pencas), is rich in sugars. For this reason, once mature, after about seven years, the jimadores will be in charge of removing the stalks and getting to the heart of the plant, which is very similar to a giant pineapple. These cores, where the sugar is found, are taken to a brick oven where they are toasted until they go from being completely hard to malleable. This makes it easier to crush, making a paste that will be pressed and turned into a must to ferment with selected yeasts patented by Clase Azul.

After the yeasts have done their work, and following a double distillation in copper stills, Clase Azul Mezcal Durango is aged in wood and bottled in a handcrafted liquorera, made by the Mazahuas (an indigenous people famous for their craftsmanship) and by artisans from the Wixárika culture. We don't know what will make you fall in love with Clase Azul Mezcal Durango: whether it will be the sight, smell or taste. A work of art for the senses!