Zinacantan Pechuga Mezcal
Zinacantan Pechuga Mezcal is the rarest annual release in our mezcal collection: a pechuga de papalometl from maestra mezcalera Fabiola Torres Monfil of San Diego La Mesa Tochimiltzingo, Puebla — wild Agave potatorum double-distilled with a wild turkey rubbed in her family's mole poblano — bottled at 50% ABV (100 proof) in a 500mL bottle. Zinacantan makes only about 80 liters of it, once a year.
- Style: Mezcal artesanal (uncertified agave spirit), pechuga — double distillation
- ABV: 50% (100 proof)
- Size: 500mL
- Producer: Fabiola Torres Monfil, Zinacantan
- Region: San Diego La Mesa Tochimiltzingo, Puebla, Mexico
A Once-a-Year Celebration Bottle
For Fabiola ("Faby") Torres Monfil and her family, the pechuga marks the end of the production season — a token of gratitude for the year's agave, water and firewood, distilled each early May around the Santa Cruz Day festivities, a village celebration with roots over 300 years old. Around 75 wild-harvested papalometl plants go into a batch of roughly 80 liters. For the second distillation, a whole wild, organic turkey (guajolote) is rubbed with mole poblano made from Faby's mother's recipe — over 30 ingredients, including chiles, grains and spices — and distilled with the spirit in a Filipino-style copper pot still.
Zinacantan, founded in 2019 by Fabiola and ecologist Diana Pinzon, is an agroforestry project first and a mezcal brand second: everything is grown from seed, fermented with wild yeast (here, a long open fermentation in pine wood vats after a conical earthen pit roast with huaje wood), and production across all expressions totals only about 1,000 liters a year. The pechuga starts from the same base spirit as the Papalometl, then takes its celebratory second pass.
Tasting Notes
Pechuga is prized for its savory depth and silky texture, and the mole poblano rub brings warm spice and roasted richness to the wild potatorum base — a festive, complex pour unlike anything else in the Zinacantan line, including the single-distilled Pitzomel.
How to Enjoy
Sip neat, in small pours, on a special occasion — that is literally what it was made for. A natural showpiece gift from our Rare & Top Shelf shelves.
FAQ
What is pechuga? A celebratory style of mezcal redistilled with seasonal ingredients and a poultry breast — here, a whole wild turkey rubbed with mole poblano — which lends savory depth and texture.
How much is made? About 80 liters once a year, in early May, closing out Zinacantan's distillation season.
Why 500mL? This special release is bottled in a 500mL format at 100 proof for the US market.
This Zinacantan Pechuga Mezcal is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, with nationwide shipping.