Yes, already this sounds epic and you aren’t wrong. A group of 12 journalists and bartenders embarked on a journey of a lifetime to learn all things tequila and mezcal.
In 6 days we hit 3 cities, flew on 6 planes (one shoebox), stayed in 4 hotels, visited 5 distilleries and 3 Palenques and tried about 100 different tequilas and mezcals. Yes, this was hard core and only for the dedicated and liver strong.
With slap up lunches such as fresh fish ceviche at El Barco, a banging Mexican buffet in the gardens of the Herradura Distillery and a dish that consisted of deep-fried banana and cheese in Oaxaca, we never really went hungry. The lunch that really was the sh*t however was the insane feast that Mark Hix prepared for us at the Ocho Distillery after being let loose in the market. Ingredients he bought ranged from pork bits (yes, BITS… we’re talking tongue, tail and penis), fresh fish, livers and a whole lot of chillies. Pitching up on a taco food kart he whipped up the Mexican feast of all feasts for us hungry journos, and of course the guys working at the distillery (harvesting agave plants really builds up an appetite!).
We drank tequila out of animal horns and mezcal out of petrol cartons, Betangas at La Capilla, Mezcal Margaritas at Zandunga and a lot of warm straight booze in our van (which we probably spent more time in than our actual hotels).
THINGS TO DO ON A MEXICO CASK TRIP
- Do eat bugs
- Do bring props - Mexican wrestling masks, racing moustaches, harmonicas, gun sunglasses, etc…
- Do have after parties at hotels – we were only there one night anyway right?!
- Do hit the markets
- Do let Mark Hix create you a feast
- Do pose with a donkey
THINGS NOT TO DO ON A MEXICO CASK TRIP
- Don’t get wasted on warm mezcal before visiting a tiny palenque you need to behave in
- Don’t drink tap water and get ill before a 3 hour van journey
- Don’t take photos of market workers without asking
- Don’t go to Mexico on a diet
- Do not get stabbed by the agave plant – the poison will make the pain last for hours
- Don’t comment on the palenque horses
To be honest, it’s a miracle we all made it out alive – our memories maybe a tad hazy but of course everything was well documented to help us piece together this AWESOME trip.
Big shout out to the CASK crew and Ocho Tequila for arranging such a BANGING adventure… damn good show!
Want to see what really went down? Check out our Facebook album for more photos.