Melate Papalometl- Noel Negrellos Ortega 375mL

Melate Papalometl is a wild agave spirit distilled by Noel Negrellos Ortega in San Luis Atolotitlán, Puebla, from papalometl that spent eight to ten years growing wild before harvest. This 375mL expression represents one of 180 liters produced in August 2022, capturing a rare agave species from the high-altitude terrain of eastern Puebla where mezcal traditions run deep and undocumented. The papalometl varietal is among the least commercially cultivated agaves, and small batches like this reflect the survival of village-scale distilling in a region Chicago drinkers are only beginning to discover. Noel Negrellos Ortega works in San Luis Atolotitlán, a municipality in the Sierra Negra foothills where agave spirits have been made for generations outside the denominación de origen system that governs labeled mezcal. The papalometl was roasted in an earthen pit oven for seven days, then crushed by hand using a mallet and canoe rather than a tahona or mechanical mill. Fermentation took place in wooden vats fed by well water over seven to twelve days, and the mash was distilled twice in traditional Filipino-style stills common to Puebla's agave-distilling villages. The water source and wood fermentation vessels contribute a distinct minerality and funk that separates Puebla spirits from their Oaxacan counterparts. Expect earthy, vegetal intensity with notes of wet stone, green herbs, and a mild smoky backbone from the week-long earth-oven roast. The wild papalometl brings a bitterness and astringency that reads more like ancestral pulque than polished blanco tequila, with a finish that lingers on black pepper and dried grass. Sip this neat to understand the raw expression of the agave, or pair it with mole poblano, grilled lamb, or dark chocolate to complement the spirit's mineral weight and herbal complexity. Available for pickup at Off Premise Chicago, 1128 W Armitage Ave in Lincoln Park, with local Chicago delivery and nationwide shipping.