Sadly, we lost Everardo in September of 2021. With him, we lost not only a talented mezcalero, but a joyful friend and colleague. He was the latest in a family of mezcaleros that goes back six generations (as far as they can recall). His uncle, Abel García, will be taking over duties as maestro mezcalero, and, having worked with Everardo for many years, we do not expect anything but continued excellence from the family palenque.
The García family make most of their mezcals in the artisanal style, however, about a year before his death, Everardo installed one 80-liter clay pot and the few expressions that emerged from this new hybrid arrangement were fantastic. The García family tobalá is among the best treatments of this agave that we know of —its deep minerality, characterized by notes of tobacco and caramel, is achieved by letting the cooked agave sit for up to one month prior to distillation—allowing a blue aspergillus mold to grow on it before maceration, a family secret that’s been passed down for, well, who knows how long.
