The Mezcal Rush: Explorations in Agave Country

by Granville Greene

Overview

"A rich, inclusive portrait of one of the world's great drinks." ––Kirkus Reviews


Mezcal. In recent years, the oldest spirit in the Americas has been reinvented as a pricy positional good popular among booze connoisseurs and the mixologists who use it as a cocktail ingredient. Unlike most high-end distillates, most small-batch mezcal is typically produced by and for subsistence farming communities, often under challenging conditions. As Granville Greene spends time with maestros mezcaleros, who distill their drinks using local agaves and production techniques honed through generations, mezcal becomes a spirit of contradictions––both a liquid language celebrating village identity and craftsmanship, and a luxury export undergoing a gold-rush-style surge. The Mezcal Rush explores the complications that can arise when an artisanal product makes its way across borders.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781619028449
Publisher:	Catapult
Publication date:	03/21/2017
Pages:	295
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

GRANVILLE GREENE is a graduate of The Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University. He has written for Outside, The New York Times, and many other publications. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for The Mezcal Rush


"A rich, inclusive portrait of one of the world's great drinks." —Kirkus Reviews



"A unique and fascinating journey following the mezcal trail from remote Mexican villages to trendy bars abroad, from indigenous fiestas to mixology events crammed with modish tipplers. Greene's lively and skillful blend of travelogue and social commentary charts the sometimes troubled links between these very different worlds." —Gideon Rachman, chief foreign affairs commentator, The Financial Times



"Impressively informative, exceptionally well written, organized and presented, The Mezcal Rush is an original and inherently fascinating read from beginning to end." ­—Wisconsin Bookwatch



"An artful combination of travel narrative and research—I felt as if I was sipping mezcal through Mexico as I read it." —Baylor Chapman, author of The Plant Recipe Book

From the Publisher

2017-01-16
A longtime journalist takes a cultural deep dive into the history and contemporary re-emergence of Mexico's second-most-famous elixir.In an industry dominated by agribusiness and liquor wholesalers, the locally cultivated, small-batch character of mezcal is something special. In this debut work of nonfiction, Greene takes his time to narrate the tale, employing journalistic instincts and a keen talent for capturing people's stories. This is quickly apparent as he shares a drink with two immigrants in his Santa Fe home. "It doesn't matter if their local hooch tastes good or bad, or if anyone likes it," he writes. "The drink is a reflection of who they are—and that's something to be proud of." From there, Greene describes his evolution from drinking worm-laden mezcal in college to discovering the subtle burn, smokiness, and richness of the nectar cultivated in Mexico's Oaxaca region, where he spent nine months in 2011. There are a variety of voices represented here, ranging from the artisan producers who use alchemy to craft their wares to two young entrepreneurs hoping to build their fortunes on mezcal in the United States. Greene also incorporates bits of regional history, from the inhabitants' Zapotec origins to the coming of the Spanish around the 15th century. The author touches on the swinging days of psychedelic tourism that inspired the likes of William Burroughs and Malcolm Lowry, among others. Greene also deftly mixes chemistry and poetry, taking care to reflect on the refining of mezcal as an art as much as a science. Alongside clear but focused descriptions of making mezcal, the author describes it as "drinkable folk art." Finally, Greene asks pointed questions as he ponders "Columbusing" and the schism between the way mezcal is portrayed and its authentic, indigenous roots. A rich, inclusive portrait of one of the world's great drinks.

Kirkus Reviews