It has never been easier to get into the world of mezcal. A few years back, when the artisanal mezcal market started to really pop off, all sorts of new brands emerged. Many of those brands were made from interesting varieties of wild agave and utilized traditional small batch production techniques.
This resulted in a lot of great bottles, which were so prohibitively expensive that it led many beginning drinkers toward tequila, since it was easier to find and generally much less expensive.
But since then, the mezcal market has exploded, and now we’re getting all sorts of great bottles for a much more affordable price. To help you find the best entry point — or, if you’re already a seasoned mezcal lover, point you in the direction of some great affordable bottles — we put eight bottles to the blind taste test.
Methodology:
To keep this list as affordable as possible, we decided on a below $50 price point. At this price, you’ll find some seriously delicious bottles that won’t break the bank but still contain some of the magic that the higher-end artisanal varieties provide.
Here is today’s tasting class:
- Amaras Espadín Joven
- Dos Hombres Espadìn
- El Silencio Espadín
- Illegal Mezcal Reposado
- Madre Mezcal Espadín
- Maguey Del Vida Puebla
- Manojo Mezcal Joven
- Rosaluna Joven
I sampled a pour of each at random in an unmarked glass, recorded my initial tasting notes, and ranked each accordingly. This roster was a mix of bottles we were familiar with and some new brands on the market. While there is an obvious hierarchy, a lot of our picks were neck and neck for this taste test, so if you come across one on sale, take the deal!
Let’s drink.
Part 1: The Mezcal Blind Taste Test
Taste 1:
Nose: Very vegetal on the nose with notes of green pepper and celery leaf joined by a touch of smoke.
Palate: Chili pepper spice hits the palate first, followed by a fresh leather flavor and a heavy spiced wood.
Finish: You can really taste that barrel on the finish, with minimal smoke. This one goes down smooth.
Taste 2:
Nose: A mix of agave, salt water, and wet clay. Very natural.
Palate: I’m tasting bright and buttery popcorn tones with a sweet vanilla kiss, followed by zesty pepper and wet soil.
Finish: That vanilla reappears on a very short finish mixed with a touch of hit and smoke.
Taste 3:
Nose: A bit of cotton candy joined by toasted caramel notes and a crisp woody character.
Palate: Smokey as it hits your palate before those sweet caramel notes come in, followed by butter, and a subtle burn.
Finish: Very buttery on the finish, joined by notes of pine.
Taste 4:
Nose: A hint of green apple skin joined by acetone and milk chocolate.
Palate: Bright, crisp, and very fruity. I’m tasting peach, grapefruit, and caramelized agave.
Finish: A light smoke kiss with a stone fruit finish.
Taste 5:
Nose: A mix of tart green apple skin and banana peel, joined by a hint of bubble gum.
Palate: I’m getting a lot of charred fruit here, specifically mango, with a white pepper funk and some smokey mesquite tones.
Finish: This one ends a bit short and flat.
Taste 6:
Nose: Rich roasted agave notes on the nose joined by fresh jalapeño.
Palate: A nice layer of citrus and tropical fruits. I’m tasting mango, pineapple, and grapefruit.
Finish: Silky smooth with a long kiss of mesquite smoke.
Taste 7:
Nose: Bright and crisp with some soothing herbaceous notes.
Palate: Cilantro and celery on the palate with a touch of sea salted pear.
Finish: Surprisingly lacking in smoke. It’s smooth and crisp, rather than smoky and spicy.
Taste 8:
Da
For the price, it doesn’t offer enough flavor. We can imagine this one working well as a cocktail base though.
Part 2: The Mezcal Ranking
8. Dos Hombres — Joven (Taste 5)
Price: $44.99
ABV: 43.2%
The Mezcal:
Dos Hombres is most known for being the brand by Breaking Bad costars Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. I’m sorry to the boys, but this one fell flat to us in this blind taste test.
An unaged joven made from hand-harvested espadín agave, we found this mezcal to be too mellow and smoothed out.
The Bottom Line:
For the price, it doesn’t offer enough flavor. We can imagine this one working well as a cocktail base though.
7. Madre Mezcal — Espadín (Taste 2)
ABV: 40%
Price: $38.99
The Mezcal:
This expression from Madre is made using a single varietal of agave, espadín, sourced from the foothills of Oaxaca Mexico and sports a tasty — but simple — earthy flavor with a sweet aftertaste.
While this one is missing depth, it serves as a great over-the-rocks sipper, which is a rarity for this price range.
The Bottom Line:
It didn’t take our tastebuds on a journey like a lot of the other bottles we tasted today, but the flavor was good. We’d flag this one as a good bottle for mezcal beginners.
6. Illegal Mezcal — Reposado (Taste 1)
ABV: 43.2%
Price: $32.99
The Mezcal:
Illegal’s reposado was the only aged mezcal in our tasting lineup today, so it was pretty easy to pick out. We tried not to let that affect where we ranked it. Generally, an aged mezcal is going to run you easily over $50, so picking this up at this price is a steal!
This repo has received Gold Medal recognition from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and was named the Best Reposado in 2023 by Esquire.
We wouldn’t go that far, but this one was pretty good, especially if you shy away from the smokey notes of mezcal.
The Bottom Line:
A nice middle ground between the smoky and spicy flavors of mezcal, and the more mellow bright notes of tequila. An ideal bottle for tequila drinkers looking to dip their toes in the mezcal waters.
5. El Silencio Mezcal — Espadín (Taste 8)
ABV: 43%
Price: $30.99
The Mezcal:
We know bottle design isn’t anything, but it’s kind of amazing that you can get a mezcal that looks this nice and premium, but only costs $30. But that’s the mezcal market for you — a spirit that prioritizes aesthetics.
El Silencio’s mezcal hails from Oaxaca and is made from hand-picked 7-9 year old espadín agave that is slow-roasted, crushed, and double-distilled.
The Bottom Line:
Smokey, yet sweet, El Silencio’s espadín is a versatile bottle that is ideal for sipping, shooting, and mixing.
4. Manojo Mezcal — Joven Espadín (Taste 7)
ABV: 47%
Price: $49.99
The Mezcal:
Manojo is significant, if not only because it’s hands down the most expensive mezcal in this lineup (it sits right under our price cut off). This brand comes from famed Mexican chef Enrique Olvera (head chef of CDMX’s Pujo and NYC’s Cosme) and is produced by the mezcalero power couple Joel Velasco and Felicitas Hernández.
The mezcal is produced in San Luis del Río from nine-year-old espadín agave that is cooked in an earthen oven, tahona crushed, fermented, and twice distilled through copper pot stills.
The Bottom Line:
It tastes great, and is supremely smooth. To our palate, this tastes like a mezcal that was designed to be a solid cocktail base. As such, you might not get as much out of sipping it as you’d hope for the price, but if you want a mezcal that elevates your cocktails rather than distracts, this is the ideal pick.
3. Rosaluna — Joven Espadín (Taste 6)
ABV: 40%
Price: $33.99
The Mezcal:
Tasting Notes:
Rosaluna is going for a very specific type of mezcal drinker. The brand proudly totes itself as organic, gluten and carb-free (what mezcal isn’t?), plant-based (what mezcal isn’t?), and vegan (again, what mezcal isn’t?!).
Teasing aside, Rosaluna is serious stuff that is produced using a six-generation process that utilizes the hearts of over-ripened agave that is harvested after eight years, charred in an oak earthen put, tahona extracted, fermented in pine fats for eight days, and double distilled through copper pots.
The Bottom Line:
Balanced between fruity and smoky notes with a pleasing spicy finish.
2. Del Maguey Vida — Puebla (Taste 4)
ABV: 40%
Price: $30.99
The Mezcal:
Often cited as a “beginner’s mezcal,” the reason Del Maguey Vida’s single village joven mezcal, Puebla, is so inviting is because of its easy-to-drink flavor that balances smoky earthiness with a sweet fruity finish.
This mezcal is produced in Axocopan, Puebla from local agave that is slow roasted in an earthen oven, naturally fermented, and distilled in copper pots.
The Bottom Line:
Incredibly easy to drink. This light and fruity mezcal is heavy on the sweet tones and keeps its smokier notes gentle and palate-pleasing.
1. Mezcal Amaras — Espadín (Taste 3)
ABV: 37%
Price: $34.99
The Mezcal:
Amarás’ Espadín is a multi-gold medal-winning mezcal made from espadín agave sourced from the Oaxacan mountains harvested at peak maturity (about 8 years old). The agave is slow-roasted in a conical stone oven lit by oak, Egyptian milled, and fermented in pine vats before being distilled through a copper pot.
What stood out to us immediately was just how smoothly this expression travels across the palate, but it still contains those smoky and herbaceous notes we expect out of mezcal. While it was hard to rank some of the others on this list, this was an easy pick for our top spot. For the money, it tastes like it punches way above its weight, and that’s just what we’re looking for!
The Bottom Line:
Gentle and crisp, with a nice mix of herbaceous, smoky, and buttery notes. This one is very easy to drink, so be warned.