Heritage Mezcal Chava Periban, Roy Sierra

There are many ways to access the very vast diversity within Mexican food and drinks. Some love spirits, others honey or tea. But Martina ( from @colectivoamasijo) has been working with many different producers from around the country trying to showcase milpa-based agricultural products. We hope you enjoy this episode that delves into the many faces of Mexican agriculture.

If there has been an agave that I've been aggressively celebrating for the last few years, it definitely has been Lamparillo.

I still remember the first time I tried and I was so confused.I just didn't know that an agave could create that specific set of flavors and aromasBut most importantly I couldn't imagine the kind of landscape that could foster such an unique agave.

To better understand this convoluted story please welcome Sergio Garnier, patrón at Ultramundo Mezcal, and his tremendous love for the dessert.

If you want to buy the puntas box, that includes the lovely lamparillo puntas, head to MagueyMelate.com and find the "Heritage Mezcal Box" in its shop. Available starting June 10th.

Arguably the first person to coin the term pulque aristocracy was Jose Vasconcelos, one of Mexico's most famous intellectuals.

Using this term he was referring to the many families that recognized in pulque a profitable industry that fueled both exceptional festivities and everyday work.

But now pulque is almost a rarity in Mexico City, and the once buoyant business is  an almost extinct tradition. I had the chance to talk with Martina Manterola, whose family was part of such aristocracy, exploring her memories, interests and frustrations around this wonderful agave ferment. 

Hope you enjoy this one.

Different places ask for different drinks, even certain music styles, in my opinion, need specific booze pairings.

And even though I am always the first to complain when I can't find delicious complex spirits in the middle of the night. I am starting to understand that calibrating which booze is served on a dancefloor is a important as the stage and lights design.

Without further adieu, please welcome Roberto Ávila, and his many insights on how to create accurate booze experiences.

There are so many reasons why people may start a mezcal brand. Some do it for the money, some for love and some others because the craft has been in their families for generations.

But regardless of how you started, nobody, to my understanding, has found a perfect formula to maintain exceptional quality while still paying the bills.

Without further adieu please welcome Sergio Garnier, from Ultramundo Mezcal, and his rather atypical approach to owning a mezcal brand.

Like many agricultural products, agaves have developed a complex relationship with humans over millennia.

Some agaves were chosen to make rope, others to extract pulque and maybe the luckiest of them all to create mezcal.

But there've been many other more subtle ways in which people have chosen their favorite agaves to deal with. In this conversation with Fabio Raya we talk about the agaves that were favored in Brazil versus those that we decided to love in Mexico.