YOUR EXCLUSIVE MEZCAL TASTING - MEXICO CITY
Become a mezcal expert with a one-of-a-kind expert at your side!
Mezcal (a.k.a. mescal) is the 'alcohol du jour' in Mexico, New York, and Sydney.... and with good reason.
As an artisanal product of denomination,
mezcal (and its prima materia, agave) has a breathtaking cultural history, a strong bond with terroir, & an astonishing range of tasting notes.
If you are a foodie, then this private 1.5 hour tour in Mexico City is a must!
Experience three distinct boutique production distillations & discover the incredible variety of formats mezcal embodies, through experience, knowledge & flavor!!
Our mezcal expert Paco (right) does not wear a bow tie, but he is the undeniable 'Rhodes Scholar' of Mezcal.
This a highly educative mezcal tasting, set in an informal ambience, so you can ask questions, and relax!
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
By the tour's end, you'll agree. The magic of turning cactus into mezcal is nothing short of a miracle.
I cannot recommend highly enough the Mezcal tasting at la Clandestina. The products are sensational, the experience educational, and the dinner at the end at la Lavanderia simply delicious, the cocktails being another highlight of that place.
Laura, Matt, Jose and Paco made Mexico as exciting, interesting and accessible as could have been imagined for a group our size.
I cannot recommend them strongly enough.
These large unlabelled artisanal bottles are the supply of mezcal used for your private mezcal tasting.
You won't try a single mezcal that comes from a branded or commercial label bottle.
Our focus is on single-batch, limited production mezcals, sourced directly from rural suppliers.
About to book? Excellent!
if you are more than 2 people,
don't forget to click the add-on !
Dear Laura, You should know, this mezcal tasting with Paco was so much fun, and so informative. This is something special for us to experience. We so appreciate today’s tasting. I cannot say enough about how great this was!"
P Lao
MEET MEXICO CITY'S FOREMOST MEZCAL EXPERT
Your mezcal host Paco is a fabulously knowledgeable and fun person to spend time with!
Our local mezcal expert is Paco Bernal - a truly likeable and knowledgeable expert, who is frankly inspirational in his knowledge of mezcal and its traditions. Be it the difference between agave species, tracing a mezcal's flavours to its production or terroir, or locating the rarest of rare mezcals in Mexico, Paco is like a Rhodes Scholar of mezcal knowledge. He gained his technical expertise at the helm of Mexico City's very first contemporary mezcal-only bars. Opening its doors in 2002, it was the first to focus on solely artisanal mezcals ( that is to say verified mezcals of denomination with a limited release production, where the end of the bottle signified the end of that unique product). Steadfastly refusing to pander to trends for mezcal cocktails and other forms of mezcal tokenism, it championed a new urban standard for mezcal purism, which has now become the new benchmark for the elite.
Mónica Brockmann meets & greets, translates, and coordinate with your onward plans.
Because Paco is THE mezcal authority in Mexico City, but is not strongly bilingual, we have a dedicated translator for this tour. Monica Brockmann is your private translator and meet&greet host for this mezcal tête à tête.
PS: you may also recognize Monica as our Foodies Delight tour guide. As a specialist in Mexican culinary traditions and a member of a food critics circle, Monica's gastronomy obsessions make her the perfect partner for anything to do with palate and taste.
Director, Laura Ainscough, was the first translator and official guide for this tour. Whenever she can keep her hand in, she does! Mezcal diversity and its sublime denomination of origin is one of her pet passions.
Arrive as novices, leave as experts!
Enmascarado is made with Espadin agave, & produced in Santiago Matatlan, with an earthen oven & copper still. It's one of the few that Paco gives the thumbs up, however all the mezcals WE taste do NOT have labels . They are single-production, limited-edition batches.
Stylewalk hosted a mezcal tasting which was excellent. I work in the drinks biz, so it was especially appreciated that the tasting built off my previous experiences. His knowledge was superb. The mescalero/owner of the bar was also amazingly detailed. The overall experience was top-notch.
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
Mezcal was once rather ignorantly considered the moonshine of Mexico. Now an artisanal mezcal,
derived from a one-off 50 liter batch,
will easily fetch US$120 a bottle
PRICES
We only offer private tours. This means you don't share your mezcal tasting with others.
Total for 2person group : US$189
Additional guests : US$52 per head
*Prices are in US dollars & don't include tax.
**We recommend contacting your bank BEFORE trying to book. Overseas banks frequently have an automated block / high alert for any payments linked to Mexico.
Most people attend with a friend (or few!!) but solo tasting guests are more than welcome too.
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
Most people attend with a friend (or few!!) but solo tasting guests are more than welcome.
MEZCAL TASTING SCHEDULE
We time your mezcal tasting so it fits with your dinner plans You can easily stroll or Uber to Mexico City's best restaurants right there in the same neighborhood afterwards.
Tuesday- Saturday: 5pm or 5:30pm
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
WATCH & SAVOR
This mini-doco with its ecological approach to enjoying mezcal gets our thumbs up!
Laura arranged a Mezcal tasting at a small local bar that was the grand finale of a wonderful tour.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM YOUR PRIVATE MEZCAL TOUR
You won't find any pompous lectures,or tilted pinkies here!
Your session is packed with factual info, local etiquette, and vignettes, but is informal in tone & atmosphere.
Hosts Paco and former host David (left) with Vblogger Team 'The Way Away'
Just like mezcal itself, we prefer things be palatable, refreshing, and approachable.
This tasting is informal in style but solid in facts, technical information, tasting notes and vignettes! Your time is spent learning about the ways in which mezcal is produced, and linking this to actual differences that you can taste immediately in the variety of flavours present in the three single batch mezcals you sample.
Many people who have taken this tour, have tried mezcal before, but were incredibly surprised at how little they knew about the range of notes, cactus types, and forms of production there are!! This tasting brought their level of knowledge and understanding to an all time high. Like wine, connecting tastes to first hand experience is essential.
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
MEZCAL TASTING ITINERARY
The essential facts!
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
- This is a private mezcal tasting session
- Duration: 1- 1.5 hours, depending on the questions you ask and what this evokes in the raconteur!
- Try 3 artisanal mezcals of denomination first-hand
- Learn about the various species of cactus used for mezcal
- Learn about the variation in tasting notes (it's a complete myth that all mezcals are smoky!)
- Discover how fermentation, production & distillation affect the taste of mezcal.
- What's the alcohol proof of mezcal? Find out!
- Be educated in mezcal drinking etiquette so you look like a local!
photo courtesy of Monica Brockmann: Instagram @ilchapis
Laura arranged a Mezcal tasting at a small local bar that was the grand finale of a wonderful tour.
WHERE IS YOUR PRIVATE MEZCAL TASTING LOCATED?
Discover why you couldn't get a more convenient location for a mezcal tasting.
You private mezcal tasting takes places in Roma Norte. From here you can VERY easily get to Centro Historico, Polanco, Juarez, and Condesa - either on foot or by Uber/Didi/Yaxi. That is to say it is very close to all the foodie neighbourhoods with the best restaurants. You couldn't get a better location because after your mezcal tasting you can simply swan on to dinner. Whereever that might be.
If you don't want to travel anywhere at all, then we recommend popping next door to the beautifully ambient and chilled out, La Lavanderia. There you can get a very great traditional food from Oaxaca, such as chalupitas, tlayudas or a massive guacamole bowl complete with mortar and pestle.
CLICK HERE FOR USEFUL INFO FOR VISITORS TO MEXICO CITY>>>
OTHER MEXICO CITY TOUR FOR FOODIES
GUEST REVIEWS
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So many times in my life I have travelled to a city and told myself: "Man, this place would be so much fun to explore with someone who knows and can take me to places that interest me, but I won't have the time". Enter Stylewalk MX. It starts with the initial contact, in which Laura and Matt take the time to understand the context in which you are visiting the city, so as to promote the tours and options that can best fit your needs. A rarity indeed.
We were a large group, so helping us organize was going to be a logistical challenge. Matt and Laura not only met the challenge, but went above and beyond by finding solutions that would allow them to adapt their existing programs to our needs.
I cannot recommend highly enough the Mezcal tasting at la Clandestina. The products are sensational, the experience educational, and the dinner at the end at la Lavanderia simply delicious, the cocktails being another highlight of that place. The avocado and mezcal cocktail is to die for.
On Friday and Saturday night, we followed DJ Jokan on an amazing journey through some of the trendiest bars in Mexico city. A tour once again perfectly adapted to our tastes and desires, and with possibilities to improvise mid-tour.
Laura, Matt, Jose and Paco made Mexico as exciting, interesting and accessible as could have been imagined for a group our size.
I cannot recommend them strongly enough.
Two hour Mezcal experience with Paco and Monica. We were SUPER impressed with the range and quality of the information. Paco is a true specialist and Monica was a great translator and a great person to enjoy a mezcal with!! Great bar also.
David hosted a mezcal tasting which was excellent. I work in the drinks biz, so it was especially appreciated that the tasting built off my previous experiences. His knowledge was superb. The mescalero/owner of the bar was also amazingly detailed. The overall experience was top-notch.
Overall, StyleWalkMX was excellent in every way. Great communication and flexibility as well as amazingly detailed knowledge of the city and the niches in which I was interested.
We did the "private mezcal tasting with Paco". If you're really interested in getting into the details of mezcal, then this is the tour for you. You'll have Paco give you a treat, tasting some great mezcals, and then going into detail explaining its production, and how it relates to the mezcals that you're tasting. It was a good time.
What will stick with me forever now, is that I know what type of mezcals to buy, and have a story to tell people when I share mezcal with them 🙂
David hosted a mezcal tasting which was excellent. I work in the drinks biz, so it was especially appreciated that the tasting built off my previous experiences. His knowledge was superb. The mescalero/owner of the bar was also amazingly detailed. The overall experience was top-notch.
