Berta comes from the Zapotec village of Chichicapam, Oaxaca, where she learned to make mezcal from her grandfather. Her husband was a mezcalero too. After he tragically died, leaving her to take care of the house and children, She turned to artisanal mezcal to make ends meet and is now revered as one of the most renowned female mezcal producers in the world.

Agave:

Berta utilizes wild agaves barril (genus karwinksi) and tepeztate (genus marmorata), which take an average of 16 and 25 years to mature, respectively.

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Roast:

The agave hearts are roasted underground for 4 to 5 days with mesquite wood found in the nearby region.

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Mill:

Once roasted, the agave hearts are mashed with a horse-drawn grind stone (traditionally known as a tahona).

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Fermentation:

Berta, utilizes Montezuma Cypress wood vats and local spring water to ferment the crushed and roasted agave. Depending on the temperature and time of year, fermentation can take 8 to 14 days.

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