Don Lorenzo Mezcal Cuishe
Don Lorenzo Mezcal Cuishe is a 750mL mezcal artesanal bottled at 45% ABV (90 proof), made from wild cuishe agave in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca. Pit-roasted over red oak, crushed by a cantera tahona and double-distilled in copper at still strength, it is the herbal, mineral pour of the Don Lorenzo wild-agave range. Order it online at Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 45% (90 proof) — brand production sheet
- Size: 750mL
- Agave: Cuishe — wild, columnar agave (see flags on the variety's taxonomy)
- Origin: Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca, Mexico
- Production (brand sheet): Stone-lined pit roast over red oak; cantera tahona; natural spring water; terroir-influenced natural fermentation; double distillation in copper alembic; bottled at still strength
- Maestros (brand sheet): Albaro Hernandez and Armando Hernandez
- Importer: RILO Import & Export Inc.
The Columnar Wild Agave
Cuishe grows like no other mezcal agave — tall and columnar, its piña climbing a trunk rather than spreading along the ground — and it gives one of the most distinctive spirits in Oaxaca: lean, herbal and mineral where espadin is round and sweet. Don Lorenzo's Cuishe is made at the Mal de Amor and Dos Zapotecas palenques in Santiago Matatlán, following the brand's documented traditional method: a stone-lined pit roast over red oak, a hand-chiselled cantera tahona, terroir-driven natural fermentation, and double distillation in small copper alembics, bottled at still strength with no water added back. The house philosophy — a cleaner profile that foregrounds the agave — suits no variety better. Browse the range on the Don Lorenzo vendor page.
Tasting Notes
No brand tasting note is published for this expression. Cuishe as a variety is prized for its green, spiced character — herbs, wet stone and white pepper over roasted agave — and retailer descriptions of this bottling echo a smoky, spiced profile in that family. At 45% and still strength, nothing is diluted.
How to Enjoy
Sip it neat from a copita, slowly — cuishe rewards attention and a little air. It makes a fascinating side-by-side with the rounder Don Lorenzo Mezcal Mexicano, and more single-variety mezcals are in our tequila and mezcal collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is cuishe agave?
A wild, columnar agave — it grows upward on a trunk, unlike the ground-hugging rosettes of most mezcal agaves — known for herbal, mineral, spiced spirits. It is one of the classic wild varieties of Oaxaca.
Where is Don Lorenzo mezcal made?
In Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca, at the Mal de Amor and Dos Zapotecas palenques, by a family the brand describes as three generations into the craft.
How strong is Don Lorenzo Cuishe?
The production sheet records 45% ABV (90 proof) — slightly lower than its 45.5% siblings, and bottled at still strength with no water added.
Tall agave, lean spirit — order Don Lorenzo Mezcal Cuishe online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.