elements table
tasting notes
Maestro Mezcalero
Abdias De La Luz Rodriguez
Pechugas are a distilled expression reserved traditionally for special occasions and only made to order typically for fall festivities. This tradition dates back hundreds of years and the origins of why or how it got it's start are still debated, one can say it could have begun out of pure curiosity. Many pechugas have been discovered all across Mexico where each region explores hanging different local animals to be distilled with the mezcal. For this expression, Abdias used a local free range chicken stuffed with Mole Poblano and fruits.
Agave:
In Abdias' Pechuga De Mole Poblano, the master distiller began by harvesting mature agave popalometl, an heirloom varietal that takes 6 to 10 years to develop.
Roast:
After shaving the agave heart to its core, Abdias roasted them below ground in an earthen oven for 5 days. The oven was fueled by a blend of local woods atop volcanic rocks, covered with woven mats and soil.
Fermentation and milling:
Like his father before him, Abdias ferments the cooked agave hearts twice in bullhide sacs with potable water. The first time around, he ferments them whole. He and his team then mill them by hand using large wooden mallets. The crushed agave was refermented in the bullhide sacs for second time.
Distillation:
Luneta's Pechuga De Mole Poblano was distilled three times.
Heated over a carefully tended fire, the fermented agave is distilled in a copper still. The second distillation is conducted in a still made of a stainless steal pot and a coral tree trunk neck a tradition dating back hundreds of years in the area. During the third distillation a whole chicken that is stuffed with herbs, fruit, mole Poblano & spices (a family secret recipe) is hung from the tree trunk still.
Cut:
The hearts, heads and tails are then mix to yield a balanced blend of 47.7% abv.