NETA - Tobalá Capón Mezcal by Primitivo Vásquez
NETA MEZCAL - Tobalá capón | December 2023 | Primitivo Vásquez Vásquez | 84 bottles
Primitivo has been growing a diverse mix of different species and micro-endemic cultivars and has helped preserve many rare, local tyles of agave. Around 2017, he and his family began planting Tobalá from seed collected from wild growing plants that were left to flower in different stretches of their lands. Cross-pollinated by bats and hummingbirds, these mother plants yielded seed that produced a multitude of Tobalá type plants, as well as many Coyote hybrids. Under cultivation in Logoche, these agaves can reach maturity in as few as five years while growing with similar size and sugar content to many of their wild counterparts.
In a parcel of cultivated black earth, eighteen Tobalá plants began to sprout their flowering stalks during the months of May and June. Frequently monitoring the growth of the stalk, Primitivo chopped the quiotes as the reached about two feet in height, leaving the plants capón for nearly six months before returning to harvest the selected maguey following the full moon of November 2024. Primitivo took charge of the most difficult labor, but received assistance from his wife, Elvia, and their children Christopher and John Brandon. After a slow and temperature controlled double distillation, Primitivo composed a total of 70 liters with a careful mix of heads, hearts, and tails with a cordón cerrado that corresponds with 46.3% ALC. The aromas and flavors are extremely emblematic of Tobalá from the region, well balanced with rich with sea-salt and limestone minerality and creamy overripe fruit. A modest fan of his own work, Primitivo kept ten liters for himself, and the remaining 60 liters were selective for a rare limited bottling released in the United States.
§ Maguey(es): Tobalá (Agave potatorum x Agave seemanniana)
§ Provenance of the maguey: Homegrown; Copal Dulce parcel
§ Producer: Primitivo Vásquez Vásquez
§ Region: Logoche, Miahuatlán
§ Soil type: black earth; tierra negra
§ Rest time after harvest: five days
§ Oven: Conical earthen pit; four days with mesquite wood
§ Rest time after oven: Three days
§ Maceration: Machete and shredder
§ Fermentation: Native yeasts; food-grade plastic tub with 1,000kg cooked agave and 800 liters of well water
§ Dry fermentation time: 24 hours
§ Wet fermentation time: 13 days
§ Distillation: 2x in copper pot stills
§ Final composition: Heads, hearts, and tails
§ Batch size: 70L
§ Date of distillation: December 2023
§ ABV: 46.3%
About the Producer:
NETA works closely with several small, family producers and a cooperative of twelve palenqueros from the southern valleys and hills of Miahuatlán, Oaxaca. Situated at the southern tip of the Central Valleys and the foot of the Sierra Madre del Sur mountains, the area is renowned for the strong character of its people, its diverse landscapes, and the rich agricultural and culinary traditions that have been maintained throughout generations. As such, the region has preserved its reputation for producing some of the finest mezcales and agave spirits anywhere in Mexico. The recipes and knowledge have been passed down and shared through family and community ties. Some mezcaleros follow their grandfathers’ traditions to the letter, while others experiment to carefully fine-tune the laborious process in accordance with their own tastes, observations, and relationships with the natural world. No two productions can ever be exactly the same as environmental conditions, water, natural yeasts, and soil types all contribute to their nuances just as much as the touch of their maker. Since 2012, our friendships and working relationships with families in rural communities in Miahuatlán and the Central Valleys of Oaxaca have granted us participation in a world elusive to those not born into it. It is this humbling privilege that allows us to present a carefully curated selection of extraordinary spirits that would otherwise never be found outside of their place of origin. Así es, la mera mera NETA.
46.3% abv / 750ml