Nose: oh yeah this is definitely clay pot, tons of fig newton, fudge, tomato based sweet bbq sauce, ketchup

Palate: mmm nice earth, dried dates, soil, dark cocoa, orange marmalade, moving to the finish is mesquite spice. Minerality persist as a foundation through the finish as I get some nice Burnt ends. Finish is crispy burnt ends, carnitas, charred orange, more soil

A solid and enjoyable clay pot Arroqueno. I dig it more and more as I sip.

ABV: 43%

Nose: Greek yogurt, leather, wood varnish, lemon, lavender, cucumber

Palate: light thin mouthfeel but solid. Grapefruit, tart mango, some ginger, camphor, shoe polish, leans more citrus, then floral perfume like moving into the finish. Finish is pine, herbal lemongrass, a bit vegetal, flowers, pouporri

Overall this is cool stuff given the location it comes from and production. I can see the leather jacket note Rakhal mentions, particularly oil used on leather. Super interesting

Nose: Citrus, melon, salted cucumber, slightly briney and sea water

Palate and Finish: grapefruit, tart strawberries, turmeric, cherry, moving toward the finish is rooibos tea, soil. Finish is white pepper, asphalt, lemon lime.

This stuff just keeps getting better as I sip it. I get a lot of elements of Guerrero I love but damn is that strawberry note unmistakable. Love it

Batch SEM-ARR-001. 47%

Nose: wet earth, juicy fruit, light mangoes, passionfruit, wet herbs

Palate: solid fruit, mangoes, pineapple, fig, red apple, soil, cocoa powder, rock. Finish is white pepper, more cocoa, some cinnamon and clove

This stuff is great. Nothing wild and complex but down right delicious. Would be happy with a bottle

Nose: rotten melon, overnight oats, coconut cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, petrichor

Palate: syrupy caramel on the front end, tangy vanilla, cantaloupe, candied limes. Finish is honey jalapenos and minerality.

This is layered complex and beautiful. Just unreal good. The mouthfeel is great and no type of note dominates. Let so well put together.

Update: Tried this next to the Melate Benigno and they are definitely different. Melate is all fruit and tangy. This has more layers, spice and minerality. Both are fantastic

Nose: Mustard, honeysuckle, cilantro, slightly melony, petrichor

Palate: herbal melon? (if that’s a thing), more mustard, herbal limeade, popsicle stick, peanuts, moving into the finish it’s got some minerality but a bit more tangy. Finish is lime, graphite, a blast of herbs as it settles down. Sage, cilantro

Solid but not quite as fun or layered as Felipe’s bicuixe. A good madrecuixe any day though.

Nose: Pineapple, green apple, fruitier than I expected, yellow starburst, wet concrete, a little bit of herbs in there like lemongrass

Palate: Fruit continues, kiwis, citrus runts, lemon lime gatorade, towards the back I get some wet stone, charred green peppers. Finish is honey jalapenos, mint, sugar covered grapefruit, and herbs like sage that sit for a while. Mouthfeel is a little chalky which I love.

This stuff is awesome and probably my favorite of the ImpEx so far (haven’t tried Madrecuixe yet). It’s on the fruity side with some nice tart fruits I really enjoy finding in agave.

Nose: Tons of green and herbal, green wood, mesquite, rhododendron, lemon

Palate & Finish: sweet orange, popsicle stick, mustard seeds, green mangos, banana skins, lemongrass, seaweed. Finish is granite, minerality, burnt peppers and veggies, cocoa

This isn’t crazy complex but still really enjoyable and good. It’s got a lot of the Miahuatlán Karwinskii notes I love and enjoy

Nose: Fermented herbs, lemongrass, thyme, yogurty lemon lime, pineapple, kiwi, cilantro, slightly karwinskii like, mustard

Palate & Finish: Mmm lovely herbs on this too. Lemongrass, cilantro, cumin, whoa cinnamon, more cinnamon, mineral but not too bitter which I usually find. grapefruit almost, I do get the Jabali soap but not in a bad way at all, it’s like lemon Dawn. Finish is soft citrus, lavender, slate, more herbals and floral, the herbal and floral sits for a very long time

Really layered and complex. Love the way the cinnamon and herbal elements are blended in together. Great stuff. Diego is a producer I will be watching out for.

Nose: Sour mangoes, yogurty, as I sip I get a little pine and some of those herbs on the nose, grilled carrots maybe, tart berries

Palate & Finish: Some nice herbs I didn’t expect, lemongrass, cilantro, creamy papaya, mango, sweet lemon, chile powder, garlic, minerality at the back, asphalt, slate. Finish continues bitter graphite and citrus, then a bit of white pepper and tangy mustard, slightly leathery, and plenty of floral elements overtime, lilac and lavender

Easy 4.5 for me. Hits the great fruit and minerality with some good herbs. Lovely!

Nose: Citrus, lime oil, olive oil, smoked pineapple, some pine

Palate & Finish: Mesquite, lime, eucalyptus, cedar plank, green nuts, very green and almost more karwinskii like than tobala fruity. Finish is sage, potpourri, bitter grapefruit, ginger

Solid and enjoyable from Victor. A little more floral and herbal than I expected but good.

ABV: 51.1%

Nose: Nose is nice and earthy, some clay, mulch, mango, plums, play doh.

Palate: wow, this is great. Confectionery fruit, soft pear, banana, coconut, soft velvety mouthfeel, then it quickly flips to cocoa, earthy, licorice moving to the finish. Finish is graphite, smokey potting soil?, tobacco, you get a clay chalkiness

This is awesome and exactly what I look for in a clay Arroqueno. Fruit in the front and clay earth in the back Lovely stuff.

ABV: 51%

Nose: barnyard hay, a bit of yogurt, corn kernels, pine, as it sits I get some melon

Palate and Finish: soft melon, lime, white pepper, vanilla yogurt, sweet corn, honeydew. Finish is soft minerality, white pepper.

Really good. Not what I expect from Mexicano.

Batch E-10-MC-20 ABV: 50.5%

Nose: milk chocolate, mesquite, pine, rain water, mulch

Palate and Finish: Chile Orange, grapefruit, pine sap, lemon, moving to the finish I get some peanut butter, light chocolate, cinnamon, cumin, white pepper on the finish

Solid karwinksii. I’ve had a bottle of this and as it’s aired out it’s continues to get better. Good stuff

Lot: TX1-18 ABV: 48%

Nose: celery, lemon lime, menthol almost tooth paste level, tons of peppers, green peppers with salt

Palate and Finish: lemon lime Gatorade, a bit of melon, cilantro plenty of minerality bitterness, grilled veggies, slate, then moving into the finish some herbs, sage, more menthol

Solid Tep for the price. Not gonna blow anyone away but very approachable regardless

Batch: 0122VtR ABV: 47.9%

Nose: mint, lemon dryer sheets, gravel, lemongrass, slightly herbal, sandalwood

Palate: fruity, yellow dragonfruit, banana, moves to more vegetal, grilled corn, char. Bitter on the finish, grapefruit, slightly floral

Fruit forward and sweet veggies. Love this stuff, not over complicated but so easy to drink

Nose: Fresh peppers, citrusy, more lime than lemon but both there, brine and minerality, sour patch lemon. After it sits a minute I get some barnyard funk.

Palate: It has this almost creaminess to it at first, like a key lime or lemon meringue, but then that dissipates quickly into a finish of bitter grapefruit, raw vegetal, green bell peppers, and earth. Finish is charred jalapeno, salted citrus and soil

Consistent Salmiana at a great price. Can’t beat that

ABV: 49.5%

Nose: Extremely veggie, vinegary zucchini, slightly sour and lactic, lime, fresh bagged leaves, pickles spears, pine trees

Palate & Finish: While many madrecuixe have wood this is like green briny wood on the shoreline, very tangy brine and citrus, mustard, citrusy grapefruit juice, honey peppers, popsicle stick, sauerkraut, coleslaw, tart kiwi. Finish is more lemon lime and eucalyptus. South Carolina mustard based bbq sauce, slight back pepper on the backend, as it sits it becomes a bit chocolate

More mustardy and briney than I expected. Nose is a bit unique and incredibly vegetal. I can’t stop thinking about that stale vegetal smell of picking up slightly damp leaves in the fall. Good stuff

2023 ABV: 48%

Nose: Lemon lime, firewood, rotten banana skins, limeade, mango

Palate: Beautiful bitter citrus. Sweet mango, cucumber lemon water, tons of minerality on the back, chalk, grapefruit, lemon chalk candy, bitter basil. Finish is white pepper, chalky bitterness, cranberry bitterness, lemons, cut grass, lemongrass, more grapefruit and some bitter leatheriness

I enjoy this. I love the chalky bitterness and citrus together. Good stuff

Lot 3 ABV: 49.8%

Nose: Light minerality. vanilla and coconut comes on after sitting. Earthy Pear, rosemary and thyme

Palate: Peppered mangoes, mouthfeel is bit creamy with almost some coconut, bell peppers, green veggies. kiwi, maybe some pineapple. It has all this with light earthy acidity I enjoy. Finish is tart citrus like grapefruit, passion fruit, pickled chilies, some Andes mint chocolate

This is really tasty with both savory and fruit. It’s got some nice coconut mango elements going on book ended with veggie and earthy elements