Vida Mezcal del Maguey 70cl
If you're going to learn mezcal from one bottle, make it this one. Del Maguey's Vida comes from San Luis del Rio in Oaxaca, made by the Cruz family from 100% espadín agave, and it was designed from the start to bridge the gap — traditional enough to be the real thing, approachable enough to mix. It's the bartender's default for good reason.
Everything is done the old way: agave hearts roasted in an earthen pit, crushed, fermented in open wooden vats with wild yeast, then twice distilled in small copper stills. That pit-roasting is where mezcal's smoke comes from — it's smoke from cooking, not from peat.
At 42%, Vida is lighter-bodied than many artisanal mezcals, which is part of its charm. The nose is campfire smoke, cooked agave and a little leather, lifted by charred pineapple and flamed sage. The palate brings charred orange, green herbs, white pepper and that green, earthy note of roasted agave fronds. The finish is clean and warming. It's smoky but never aggressive — a proper introduction rather than a challenge.
This is your everyday mezcal: sip it slowly to get to know it, then let it transform a Margarita or a Negroni.
How to Serve
Traditionally sipped neat from a small clay copita or wine glass, at room temperature, in slow sips — never shot. Superb in a mezcal Margarita or Oaxacan Old Fashioned.
Where to Drink It
Tayēr + Elementary in Shoreditch for inventive agave drinks. Swift in Soho. Milroy's of Soho for a smoky serve done with care.
Food Pairings
The classic is orange slices dusted with sal de gusano. It's also brilliant with grilled prawns or anything off a charcoal grill.
