Chacolo
Mexico
The Partida family, led by Don Macario and his son Miguel, have been making their distinctive ‘mezcales’ for five generations in Zapotitlan de Vadillo, Jalisco. However, despite being in Jalisco, they are not producing tequila; and since the state is outside the protected Denomination of Origen, they cannot label their mezcal as such. Yet they are renowned among mezcaleros and mezcal aficionados as some of the finest producers in Mexico. The family distills only ~2000 liters per year, using just one variety of Agave rhodacantha and twelve different subspecies of Agave angustifolia, which they have been collecting, cultivating and documenting for three generations.