The Taste of Mezcal

Tasting 15 Mezcales with Paula Aquino Sánchez

In our first part of our mezcalera series, we are joined by Paula Aquino Sánchez as she shares her background — how she first stepped into the world of mezcal production, the opposition and skepticism she faced as a woman in mezcal, and what uses mezcal had in her family. Her voice in this conversation allows us to see how her connection to mezcal is deeply rooted in family tradition and how her legacy will continue to be put into practice as it gets passed down through generations. Featuring Paula Aquino Sánchez [https://netaspirits.com/maestros/2020/8/23/paula-aquino-snchez], independent legacy mezcalera Host: https://www.elizabethmcqueen.net/Daniela Gutierrez-Flores [https://spanish.ucdavis.edu/people/daniela-gutierrez-flores-0] & Fabiola Santiago Partner: Mi Oaxaca [https://www.mioaxaca.org/]Editors: Santiago Reyes Production Intern: Alyssa Pulido Theme by Ronan Delisle [https://www.ronandelisle.com/] This podcast is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute [https://uchri.org/grants/] and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Center [https://nais.fsu.edu/] at Florida State University.

Consuming Mezcal

The enduring fascination with the “authentic” drives tourists to seek the artisanally-produced mezcal, especially in Oaxaca, where Daniela and Elizabeth find themselves in Esculent’s fourth episode of this season. Through their navigation of different topics like rising housing prices, Michelin star systems, and alcohol consumption during times of the pandemic, we take a look at the relationship both researchers have to tourism, raising the question: Is there such a thing as responsible, conscious tourism?  Featuring Asamblea de los Pueblos Indígenas del Istmo en Defensa de la Tierra y el Territorio [https://tierrayterritorio.wordpress.com/], or APIIDTT, an organization representing community and agrarian authorities from Zapotec, Ikoots, Zoque, and Mixe communities in Oaxaca. Host: Elizabeth McQueen [https://www.elizabethmcqueen.net/]& Daniela Gutierrez-Flores [https://spanish.ucdavis.edu/people/daniela-gutierrez-flores-0]Partner: Mi Oaxaca [https://www.mioaxaca.org/]Editors: Santiago Reyes & Stace Baran Production Intern: Alyssa Pulido Theme by Ronan Delisle [https://www.ronandelisle.com/] This podcast is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute [https://uchri.org/grants/] and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Center [https://nais.fsu.edu/] at Florida State University.

Serving Mezcal

At Masala y Maíz [https://www.masalaymaiz.com/] in Mexico City, no bottle goes to waste once it’s been opened. Join us for Esculent’s third episode with special guest and Director of Beverage and Culture, Sergio del Castillo and co-chef Saqib Keval, as they describe the restaurant’s cocktail program and the ethics that goes into its creation. With knowledgeable descriptions and different processes that go into making each spirit on the menu, guests are invited to taste for themselves, encountering new flavors and ingredients to learn how they’re made, and how those intimate tastes grow in relation to spirits. Host: Elizabeth McQueen [https://www.elizabethmcqueen.net/]& Daniela Gutierrez-Flores [https://spanish.ucdavis.edu/people/daniela-gutierrez-flores-0]Partner: Mi Oaxaca [https://www.mioaxaca.org/]Editors: Santiago Reyes & Stace Baran Production Intern: Alyssa Pulido Theme by Ronan Delisle [https://www.ronandelisle.com/] This podcast is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute [https://uchri.org/grants/] and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Center [https://nais.fsu.edu/] at Florida State University.

The Taste of Mezcal

When mezcal evokes memories of mom’s kitchen or relatives spritzing the spirit to the earth, it becomes clear that smoke has never been adequate to describe a taste of mezcal. In Esculent’s next episode, we are joined by Mi Oaxaca’s founder, Fabiola Santiago [https://www.oaxacthetalk.com/], as we take a look at the different ways people encounter mezcal — either through tasting wheels, aromas, or the memories and relations we ascribe to the beverage. How can we fill in the gaps from tasting wheels that enforce Eurocentric aromas? Together, we think about how one can “taste” mezcal in ways that create relations, rather than orchestrate erasure.  Host: Elizabeth McQueen [https://www.elizabethmcqueen.net/]& Fabiola Santiago [https://www.oaxacthetalk.com/]Partner: Mi Oaxaca [https://www.mioaxaca.org/]Editors: Santiago Reyes & Stace Baran Production Intern: Alyssa Pulido Theme by Ronan Delisle [https://www.ronandelisle.com/] This podcast is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute [https://uchri.org/grants/] and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Center [https://nais.fsu.edu/] at Florida State University.

A Sticky History of Mezcal

When studying the history of mezcal, why begin with the milky, lightly fermented beverage pulque? In Esculent’s new season, we are joined once again by Professor Daniela Gutiérrez Flores [https://spanish.ucdavis.edu/people/daniela-gutierrez-flores-0] as we navigate the archives detailing the cultural significance of the maguey plant in Mesoamerica. From discussing pulque’s role in sacred ritual to examining the colonial context of mezcal–both from maguey– we begin to center the narrative on Indigenous practices and experiences. Host: Elizabeth McQueen [https://www.elizabethmcqueen.net/]& Daniela Gutierrez-Flores [https://spanish.ucdavis.edu/people/daniela-gutierrez-flores-0]Partner: Mi Oaxaca [https://www.mioaxaca.org/]Editors: Santiago Reyes & Stace Baran Production Intern: Alyssa Pulido Theme by Ronan Delisle [https://www.ronandelisle.com/] This podcast is supported by the University of California Humanities Research Institute [https://uchri.org/grants/] and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Center [https://nais.fsu.edu/] at Florida State University.