Alongside restocking its two outstanding Mezcals*, we’re excited to have landed our first shipment of Madre’s newly released Tequila. If you know anything about this producer, you won’t be surprised to learn that Madre’s funky, still-strength Tequila Blanco is about as far from the commercial end of the market as you can get. Given the drink’s recent ubiquity, it’s easy to forget that Tequila is also a town and once home to a type of Mezcal known as ‘Vino de Mezcal de Tequila’. Yet, as the spirit’s popularity exploded, many producers began to abandon mezcal’s Artisanal traditions. While more and more producers in Tequila, and Jalisco in general, moved toward industrial practices, only a few have stayed committed to tradition. Madre’s spirit takes us back to that time when most of Tequila’s agave was harvested ripe, roasted in a stone oven, open-air fermented using natural yeasts and bottled unfiltered. Madre co-founder Chris Stephenson explains: “Our original vision for Madre Tequila was to create a product with the same characteristics of artisanal craftsmanship as our Mezcals.” Finding a partner aligned to that ethos was not easy, but fortunately, Stephenson and co found a small distillery in San Julián where the Padilla family specialises in the handmade production of proper, old-school farm-to-glass Tequila. Madre’s bottling is proudly additive-free. Unusually for a category commonly manipulated using artificial sweeteners (jarabes) and glycerin—even in products labelled 100% agave—Madre Tequila is made from just three ingredients: blue weber agave, natural yeast and volcanically filtered well water. Bottled at 48% and honouring Tequila’s heritage, the result is an authentic, earthy, full-bodied sipping Tequila that sits perfectly beside Madre’s striking Mezcal labels. And remember, folks, doors are for slamming—not Madre Tequila. * Please note that Madre is now bottling in 700ml bottles.