Mal Bien - Papalote Ciro & Javier Barranca Mezcal
Mal Bien Papalote from Don Ciro and Javier Barranca was produced in Chilapa de Alvarez, Guerrero. Don Ciro has been distilling agave spirits longer than most mezcaleros have been alive. His grandson Javier, on the other hand, is relatively new to the family business, having spent much of his 20s in “El Norte.” Working together for the past 7 years, theirs is a story of tradition, the passing of generational knowledge and its adaptation in a new era.
This batch was made by Javier working “a medias” with a magueyero neighbor that provided the plants in exchange for half of the finished batch. The agaves were cooked in a 10 ton pit for 4-5 days, rested a day before being milled in a wood chipper, fermented naturally with spring water for 5-7 days. The result is double distilled in 400 liter copper alembic stills and adjusted using puntas and colas from the distillation run. Lot 1020JB was produced in October 2020 using maguey papalote (Agave cupreata); the entire batch was just 222 bottles.
Mal Bien Description
Since 2016, the Mal Bien team has been traveling Mexico, driving off the map and into mountains filled with treacherous roads, police officers of questionable moral character, feral dogs, indigenous languages, narcos, ancient relics, machete wielding protestors, insect based meals, mudslides, blockades, corrupt politicians, and many of the world’s kindest, funniest, most brilliant people. In addition to some hard to believe stories, they’ve connected with a wide variety of traditional producers, whose mezcal is now bottled and exported under the Mal Bien name.
