El Pintor Mezcal Ensamble
El Pintor Mezcal Ensamble is an 82-proof (41% ABV) ensamble from Oaxaca, created by Maestro Tequilero Guillermo Barroso Arnaud — 55% 8-year-old espadin from Yautepec and 45% 15-year-old wild cuishe from Miahuatlan, cooked, fermented, and distilled together in the palenque. El Pintor describes itself as a collection of "author agave spirits," and this bottling shows why: it drinks like a painting with two signatures — the round sweetness of espadin under the angular, wild edge of cuishe. This 750mL bottle is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.
- ABV: 41% (82 proof)
- Size: 750mL
- Agave: Ensamble — 55% espadin (Yautepec, 8 yr) + 45% wild cuishe, Agave karwinskii (Miahuatlan, 15 yr)
- Origin: Oaxaca
- Production: Earthen pit cooking; indigenous-yeast fermentation; tahona mill; double-distilled in artisan copper pots
Two Agaves, One Palenque
Cuishe (Agave karwinskii) is the wild card here — a karwinskii cousin that takes 15 years to mature in Miahuatlan's rugged hills, and it brings a green, minty, almost forest-floor character that cultivated espadin never will. El Pintor pairs it with 8-year-old espadin from Yautepec for sweetness and body, cooks both in earthen pits, ferments with indigenous airborne yeast, crushes with a tahona, and double-distills in artisan copper pot stills. The result is Barroso's craft-luxury calling card: earthy, spicy, and fruity at once. Explore more ensambles in our mezcal collection or the El Pintor range.
Tasting Notes
Fresh aromas of sea salt, lime flesh, and roasted pineapple open the glass. The palate runs charred earth and mint over pineapple and almonds, with the cuishe's green wildness threaded through a long, structured finish.
How to Enjoy
Neat in a copita to follow the two agaves as they take turns. At 82 proof it's approachable enough for a second glass — and interesting enough to deserve one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's in the El Pintor ensamble?
55% espadin agave from Yautepec and 45% wild cuishe agave (Agave karwinskii) from Miahuatlan, both in Oaxaca.
Why blend espadin with wild cuishe?
Espadin gives sweetness and roundness; wild cuishe adds green, earthy, herbal complexity. Cooked and distilled together, they make a spirit neither could make alone.
How does El Pintor mezcal differ from its tequila?
Same house style and maestro — Guillermo Barroso Arnaud — but the mezcal is wild-Oaxacan and smoky where the tequila is Jalisco-lowland and clean.
Order El Pintor Mezcal Ensamble online from Del Mesa Liquor — San Diego's home for artisanal Mexican spirits.