Cumbrita De La Sierra - Lechuguilla 100% Agave Spirits, Mezcal

A true unicorn, Cumbrita de la Sierra is a 100% single-producer-owned uncertified brand of agave spirit from the northern state of Chihuahua. Maestro Destilador Dolores González works to preserve his community’s deep regional distillation heritage—he’s at least the third-generation distiller in his family lineage—in the small town of Batopilas, a former mining colony at the base of the state’s Copper Canyon.

Distillation at last takes place in a wildly unique hybrid still, locally referred to as a tren, as in “train.” A stainless steel pot (tambo) sits at the bottom, capped with an oak ring (ollada) which separates the tambo from the cylindrical wooden receiving chamber above (barril). The barril is carved in the shape of an inverted bowl at the top, with a small hole in its cap through with the evaporated spirit escapes, only to reach a second inverted bowl, or condensation pot, made of copper which sits above. The distilled spirit drains down the interior of the copper pot onto the inverted wooden bowl, and out a small chute on the side.

For this unique, uncertified agave spirit, Lechuguilla (Agave shrevei) is harvested carefully in the Chihuahuan mountains over several days, and hauled back to the town of Batopilas at the base of the Copper Canyon. It is cooked using Encino oak in a traditional earthen pit oven, covered with pine needle duff, then milled in stone by hand and fermented using spring water in a stone & clay basin. Seasonality has a pronounced impact on the flora in the region, and thus upon both the ambient yeast in the air and the spring water which filters down among the roots and flowers of the Canyon, influencing fermentation.

Final distillation takes place on an incredibly unique heritage still called a tren, made from a stainless steel pot, an Encino oak ring & cylindrical chamber, and a copper condensing basin on top. While there will be tremendous variability from batch to batch of Cumbrita de la Sierra each season, each expression promises to be uniquely delicious.

• Destilado de Agave produced in Yierbaniz, Batopilas, Chihuahua
• Maestro Destilador Dolores González
• 100% Lechuguilla (Agave shrevei)
• Cooked using Encino oak in a conical earthen oven covered with pine needle duff
• Milled by hand using ax and wooden mallet
• Fermented in stone & clay basin using spring water
• Distilled twice, using a unique hybrid still, called a tren, made of copper, steel, and Encino oak
• The nose leads with sweet herbs like tarragon and coriander and soft fruits like lychee, white peach, and honeydew; the palate is rich and silky with mellow flavors of white pepper, beeswax, grapefruit zest, caramel cream, and candied apple.
• 50% ABV (ABV may vary batch to batch)