Mexican Futures — Masks & Mezcal
Buy it now, pick it up on your next trip to Mexico City
Guerrero’s mezcal is produced mainly for local consumption. You are either going to drink it at a baptism, use it for healing, consume it on patron saint days, or save a whole batch for the future wedding of your kids. Guerrerenses, mainly Nahua heirs, have been producing mezcal for years. It has survived discrimination and government-sponsored prohibition to become the deep-rooted tradition that exists today.
Producing mezcal in Guerrero has been a particular challenge for almost a decade. Chilapa’s geography has been reshaped by social circumstances. The onset of this year’s pandemic has impacted this social context on many levels.
Tío Chuchi and Tía Victoria have produced mezcal together for almost 50 years. They and their family work 50/50 at their chivita with the magueyeros (maguey farmers) of nearby communities to produce what is essentially a community spirit. Their chivita produces mezcal only during the dry season, using mainly wild maguey papalote (cupreata).
Tío Ciro has been producing mezcal along with the Sanzekan Mezcal organization for many years. This batch of wild zacatoro maguey was produced by his grandson, Javier Barranco, while Tío Ciro composed its rich final notes.
Javier Barranco
Adela Coronel paints the bottles by hand using the dorado technique used mainly to decorate boxes made with linaloe wood. The technique requires shea oil and natural pigments as also tracing mastery to create the delicate floral ornaments.
Adela Coronel
The objective of circulating El Tigre Mezcal products is to construct an interactive platform of traditional art and culture that brings urban communities into contact with the biosocial ecologies that rural enclaves represent in the hope of cultivating publics that are willing to participate in and share traditional models and values in order to preserve these intangible cultural practices.
So ... how does this "futures" program work?
(1) Place your order online, here
(2) You'll receive a receipt by email after ordering — save that
(3) When you have booked your next trip to Mexico City, email Damian and Raquel to let them know your dates
(4) Damian will arrange a tim and place that you can meet so he can hand off your goods
Questions? Please direct them to email Damian and Raquel.
When you order below, unless you know what you're doing, unfortunately you will have to order each item individually. You can add multiple bottles of any one item in each purchase, but you can't just click once and order, say, three different expressions. Sorry! And when you go to pay, the top button option is if you want to pay with a PayPal account -- the bottom button allows you to use your credit card.
