COMUNIDAD – AMATENGO

Sergio Juárez and his son Luis run a small copper potstill in their back yard in San Agustín Amatengo (pop.1577), at 4461 feet in open country south of Oaxaca City.

The soils are rich ferriferous clay shales. Karwinskii does well here

They do single-distillation mezcals: note the refrescadera (rectification chamber) on top of their 250-liter copper pot:

about refrescadera

Ovens for single-distillation btaches are small.

Wrestling with big barril agaves.

Big mill for big agaves.

Luis talking mezcal

Buying about 35 liters of a superb tepextate.

Guajalote checking us out.