Los Danzantes Añejo is a mezcal from Santiago Matatlán in Oaxaca. It is made from 100% agave (espadin), which is baked in an underground stone oven, crushed with a traditional, horse-drawn tahona and fermented with wild yeast before distillation in small copper stills. This version is aged for 16 months in 70% American and 30% French oak. It is bottled at 46% alcohol.
Colour: Golden.
Smell: In the aroma you will find forest floor, caramel, baked agave and ripe fruit.
Tasting notes: Elegant, but also powerful. Notes of caramel, vanilla, cedar and cinnamon.
Serving suggestion: Should be enjoyed neat.
Los Danzantes is located in Santiago Matatlán in the state of Oaxaca. Here, Karina Abad and Joel Antonio produce mezcal with a focus on traditional craftsmanship. The brand and distillery are named after the approximately 300 stone reliefs found in the ancient city of Monte Alban, which depict a series of figures in strange poses. At first glance, it seemed to the discoverers that they were dancing, which is why they got the name (“the dancing ones”), but today the interpretation of the images is more gloomy. Now the figures are believed to be killed and mutilated prisoners. Phew!
At Los Danzantes, it is precisely history and tradition that drive the work. The large stone wheel that crushes the baked agave hearts is pulled by a horse named Samson – and this is almost the pinnacle of the distillery’s technology! The only quirk that some would consider unconventional is Danzantes’ use of barrel aging. It is one of the few mezcal distilleries that also produces both a reposado and an añejo.
