Santo Cuviso Lechuguilla Pechuga De Gallina
Santo Cuviso Lechuguilla Pechuga De Gallina is a 95 proof (47.5% ABV), 750mL wild agave spirit from the Copper Canyon of Chihuahua — mature Agave shrevei plants, harvested at 12–15 years in the Sierra Madre Occidental, roasted in underground stone ovens and double-distilled in copper pots, then given a third distillation over skinless chicken breast ("pechuga") that rounds and softens the spirit. This is lechuguilla, not mezcal: an entirely different species, outside the mezcal denominations, with a powerful yet refined profile the importer describes as free of additives. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 47.5% (95 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Agave: wild Agave shrevei (lechuguilla), Sierra Madre Occidental
- Process: underground stone-oven roast, hand-crushed with an ax, 6–12 days fermentation in century-old stone vats, copper-pot distilled + third pechuga pass
- Origin: distilled in Batopilas, Chihuahua by maestro Dolores González Torres
- Importer: Preiss Imports, Ramona, California
A Pechuga From the Heart of Copper Canyon
Fourth-generation master distiller Dolores González Torres makes this spirit deep in the steep mountains of Yerbaniz, Batopilas, where the dense pinewood Higuera fires the underground ovens and a touch of sotol helps the six-day fermentation along in stone vats used for more than a century. The pechuga tradition — a third distillation dripping over a skinless chicken breast — softens the spirit the way turkey-breast pechugas soften mezcal, but here it is applied to lechuguilla: the result is dry earth, bitter chocolate, roasted cocoa, fresh fig, honey, eucalyptus, and avocado leaf on the bouquet, with apple, oak wood, cooked agave, dried mint, straw, vanilla, honey, and a soft pechuga roundness on the palate (all notes from the importer's official sell sheet). Santo Cuviso itself reaches back to 1756, when Jesuit missionary Ignaz Pfefferkorn was cured by an Ópata agave remedy called "Cuviso" — the sacred remedy — and the modern Casa Santeros revival honors the bacanora families who distilled in hidden mountain vinatas through decades of prohibition. Browse more agave spirits and explore the Santo Cuviso collection at Del Mesa Liquor.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Dry earth, bitter chocolate, roasted cocoa, fresh fig, honey, eucalyptus, avocado leaf (importer-sourced).
Palate: Complex — apple, oak wood, cooked agave, dried mint, straw, vanilla, honey.
Finish: Soft pechuga roundness, powerful yet refined.
How to Enjoy
Sip it neat in a copita to meet the lechuguilla on its own terms — this is a connoisseur's spirit, not a mixer. If you know mezcal de pechuga, expect the same tradition here, just built on a wilder agave.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is lechuguilla?
A wild agave (Agave shrevei, per the brand) found only in the Chihuahuan Desert — the name means "small lettuce." It matures for 12–15 years in Copper Canyon and yields a rare, powerful distillate.
Is pechuga the same as mezcal de pechuga?
Same tradition — a third distillation over skinless chicken breast ("pechuga" means breast) — but applied here to lechuguilla, not mezcal. Mezcal pechugas typically use turkey breast with fruits and spices; this one uses only skinless chicken breast.
What proof is Santo Cuviso Lechuguilla Pechuga De Gallina?
95 proof (47.5% ABV) in the 750mL bottle.
Where is it made?
Distilled in Batopilas, Chihuahua, Mexico by maestro Dolores González Torres; Casa Santeros is headquartered in Sonora.
A rare Chihuahuan pechuga unlike anything else on the shelf — order Santo Cuviso Lechuguilla Pechuga De Gallina online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.