Del Maguey Pechuga Mezcal — Tastes Like Chicken

Years ago I attended a tequila/mezcal/sotol tasting organized by Joe Conguisti (we miss you Joe!) and still fondly remember a couple of the Del Maguey mezcals. I don't drink these often (in no small part because they sell for $60 to over $200 per bottle, when you can find them) so I was pleased to find the whole line at Binny's South Loop Tasting Room. Even better, they offer a flight of four for a highly reasonable $10.

Ten bucks gets you small clay cups filled with a half ounce (I'm sure it's more) of four mezcals, each a product of a single village. These are four surprisingly distinct spirits, with differing combinations of smoke, spice, fruit and salt. A clumsy summary: Chichicapa emphasizes smoke, San Luis del Rio is spicy in character, Santo Domingo Albarradas has an ethereal fruitiness and Minero is salty.

I decided to follow this up with a glass of Pechuga ($12), a beverage I've wanted to try for years. Pechuga is distilled from wild mountain apples and plums macerated in Minero. If I understand correctly, a raw chicken breast is used as a condenser in the clay and bamboo still. The production is strictly seasonal and reportedly the output is measured in the hundreds of bottles. Good story but how does it taste? In a word, astonishing. It starts with a taste of smoke that transforms into anise, then fruit, then salt, and maybe even chicken if you concentrate enough. Every sip repeats this same progression, and a small glass is enough to keep one occupied for an evening. I found Pechuga improved by the addition of a single small cube of ice; at nearly 100 proof, a bit of dilution and cooling helps bring out the progression of flavors.

I doubt I'll ever become a frequent drinker of mezcal but this was a real treat. Also on offer is Del Maguey's Tobala, distilled from the wild mountain maguey, which I look forward to trying soon.

Binny's Tasting Room is a surprisingly pleasant bar with a great selection of high end liquor at reasonable prices.

Binny's South Loop Tasting Room
1132 S Jefferson St
Chicago
312-768-4400

Using poultry as a flavoring in alcohol is now uncommon, but it has a venerable pedigree, to wit: the cock-ale: http://www.godecookery.com/engrec/engrec32.html

Some feel cock-ale is the original cocktail.

In the May 2008 Esquire (p.44), there's an article about Whiskyburger, which is a beverage made with a pound of ground chuck fat-washed with rye (alcohol is used to extract flavor; then liquid is frozen and fat scrapped off). Liquor is mixed mustard bitters, tomato syrup and lettuce-onion foam, then served with a dill pickle.

The whole, remarkably complex and costly recipe can be found at: http://www.esquire.com/features/drinkin ... urger-0508

My favorite lines from this or any recipe comes about mid-way: "This is a good point to sink a couple of quick shots of the remaining, nonbeefy whiskey and contemplate what your life has become. If you still wish to proceed, consider that you’ll be spending the next 40 minutes or so grating fruit...Really? Well, okay. So to make the tomato syrup.."

Thank you Rene G for the mezcal post. It is one of my favorite liquors. I agree with the adding one or two ice cubes, it really makes the flavors stand out.
I just finished a rotation of Chichicapa, San Luis del Rio, and Minero. Experiencing the different tastes of each is worth the expense. If I hit the Mega game this week the first $200 is going toward a bottle of Pechuga.

Here's Rick Bayless's recipe for a Mezcal Margarita my regular cocktail at the restaurant.

Chef Rick Bayless, Frontera Grill & Topolobambo:

1 ounce Del Maguey Single Village Mezcal, San Luis del Rio
1/2 ounce Don Pedro brandy
1-1/4 ounces fresh lime juice
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3 dashes Peychaud's Bitters
Salt for rimming, Lime wedge garnish.

Rub the lime wedge around the outside of the glass and dredge the rim in the salt (outside only, no salt on the inside). Combine ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and shake for 10-15 seconds. Strain into prepared glass; garnish with lime wedge.

When, during a trip to Oaxaca a few years ago, I got to witness mescal being made, the thing that amazed me was that the process was invented in the first place. Who comes up with ideas like this? Cut all the "leaves" off the agave, leaving a core that looks like a giant pine cone. Then burn that. Then crush it in a pit and let it ferment. And then distill it.

I understand pulke -- cut the agave, collect the liquid, let it ferment a bit. Tasty stuff, and refreshing. I can kind of understand someone wanting to make it stronger by distilling the pulke. But who, tasting that, would come up with the process for mescal?

Wacky stuff.

And then of course you're supposed to eat worms with salt and chiles while you drink the mescal. I did it, but again -- who comes up with these ideas?

Hi,

Probably they were accidents with unintended consequences.

Regards,

Last night at The Violet Hour, pechuga was on the menu. I was too afraid to try it.

I was there last night, too, Missed that. Oh, well.

I tried some of this a long time ago (and picked up one of the bottles, too, that were on the cheaper side). I wouldn't be afraid to try the one prepared with chicken -- I couldn't taste chicken at all. More to the point, IMHO, for any strict vegetarians, this mezcal isn't for them.

Rene G wrote:I decided to follow this up with a glass of Pechuga ($12), a beverage I've wanted to try for years. Pechuga is distilled from wild mountain apples and plums macerated in Minero. If I understand correctly, a raw chicken breast is used as a condenser in the clay and bamboo still. The production is strictly seasonal and reportedly the output is measured in the hundreds of bottles.

After enduring Jelvis last night at Manny's I needed a drink, bad. Across the street at Binny's Tasting Room I noticed the price of a glass of Pechuga has been adjusted from $12 to $40. I had a feeling that old price was too good to last. I guess my Pechuga drinking days are over. The flight of four mezcals is still $10, a very fair price.

Rene G wrote:

Rene G wrote:I decided to follow this up with a glass of Pechuga ($12), a beverage I've wanted to try for years. Pechuga is distilled from wild mountain apples and plums macerated in Minero. If I understand correctly, a raw chicken breast is used as a condenser in the clay and bamboo still. The production is strictly seasonal and reportedly the output is measured in the hundreds of bottles.

After enduring Jelvis last night at Manny's I needed a drink, bad. Across the street at Binny's Tasting Room I noticed the price of a glass of Pechuga has been adjusted from $12 to $40. I had a feeling that old price was too good to last. I guess my Pechuga drinking days are over. The flight of four mezcals is still $10, a very fair price.

I had my first-ever shot of Pechuga at Zapatista in Northbrook yesterday, where the spirit selection -- especially tequilas -- was vast and definitely the best thing about the place, by far. It wasn't $12 but came in at marginally reasonable $22, which definitely beats $40 -- and it was a generous pour. Still, it was more expensive than either of the ultra-bland entrees we ordered.

Not only did they have the entire Del Maguey line of mezcals, they had about 70 different tequilas, including (all?) 3 varieties of Casa Noble.

=R=

Fans of Del Maguey should check out Sombra which is made by Richard Betts MS and Ron Cooper who distributes the Del Maguey. A few dollars less and equally as nice

http://www.sombraoaxaca.com