Tres Papalote Espadin Mezcal

Tres Papalote is the mezcal brand Riviera Imports launched in October 2015 with Cheech Marin as partner and chief ambassador, and the bottle shows it: the "Koo-Koo" figure on the label was inspired by a glass sculpture from Marin's collection, the largest private holding of Chicano art in the world. The brand built its name on wild cupreata from the mountains of Guerrero, and this Espadín is the expression it added later, made in Oaxaca from the heart of cultivated maguey espadín, the agave behind most of the state's mezcal, and bottled at 40% ABV (80 proof). Being espadín rather than wild cupreata, it's the more approachable and more affordable bottle in the line, built for the back bar and the margarita station as much as the copita. The producer's own notes call it herbal and citrus up front with a smoky, bold finish, which is exactly how an Oaxacan espadín at this proof should read: enough smoke and earth to announce itself in a mezcal Negroni or a smoky Paloma, without the heat of a higher-proof pour. Gluten-free, like all agave spirits, and one of the easier entry points into mezcal for someone coming over from tequila.

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