vinepair: The 20 Best Mezcals for 2025

In many ways, moving from tequila into the expansive world of mezcal is like developing a taste for Scotch following a fascination with bourbon. Each duo shares the same parent category (agave spirits and whiskey, respectively), employs similar production techniques, and will often be found close to each other, if not side by side, in liquor stores.

Of course, there are limits to this analogy, and the aim is not to frame mezcal or Scotch as superior to their siblings. But there’s also no denying that the regional diversity within these two categories and, yes, the occasional presence of smoke, place them among the world’s most complex spirits — distillates that aficionados would often much rather enjoy neat rather than in cocktails.

Whether the destination for mezcal is a copita or coupe by way of cocktail shaker is ultimately the buyer’s decision. Either way, quality and value for money are of paramount importance, and those can be tricky things to decipher from bottle labels or even brand websites alone. So we’ve done the hard work for you, tasting through dozens of expressions, and digging into individual production details to offer this list of the 20 best mezcals to drink in 2025.

The Best Mezcals Over $100

Palenqueros Madrecuishe Valente Garcia

Another hands-on, small-batch expression, the roasted Madrecuishe agave for this 933-bottle release was crushed by mallet before being double-distilled in copper pots. Bottled at 48.9 percent ABV, it offers a bright, minerally wet rock nose, with hints of citrus and savory smoke. The palate that follows is layered with sweetness and roasted nut notes.

Average price: $104
Rating: 94

Cinco Sentidos Arroqueño Tío Pedro

A stunning and considerable labor of love, Tío Pedro Hernandez produced this batch in Santa Catarina Minas using traditional clay pots. Before he could do so, he first had to source the Arroqueño agave from over 50 miles away, in the verdant hills of Sola de Vega. After roasting for more than five days, he (along with some help from friends) mashed the agave by hand using mazos. All that effort truly paid off: The nose darts between ripe tropical fruit, yogurt, and root vegetables. The palate is at once sweet and minerally, the wet rock notes eventually leading to pleasant, dialed-down smoke, and a finish that drinks well below its almost 50 percent ABV.

Average price: $136
Rating: 95

NETA Espadin-Bicuixe Heriberto García Sánchez

Combining a 60/40 blend of wild Bicuixe and homegrown Espadín, this double-distilled ensamble flips a common mezcal experience on its head, beginning with savory, almost meaty aromas, and following with expressive green fruit and chalky minerality on the palate. With more time in glass, the aromas and flavors meld into one, just as other complex notes emerge, ensuring the drinking experience is ever evolving and endlessly enjoyable.

Average price: $149
Rating: 94

PUNCH: Don’t Know Where to Start With Mezcal? Here Are 10 Producers to Know.

In a category facing increased industrialization, these brands are fighting to preserve regional traditions.

In 2023, more than 400 brands of mezcal were exported from Mexico. That doesn’t include the increasing number of producers who are choosing not to certify their spirits, often labeling them “destilados de agave” (“distillates of agave”) instead. With so many options entering the market, figuring out which producers to seek out in order to support economic, environmental and social justice in a category facing increased industrialization (and the troublesome issues that come with it) can feel like an impossible task. 

To help, we’ve compiled a list of brands that are setting a strong example of best practices for others to follow. Many of them are producer-owned, while others source from a variety of producers but have initiatives in place to encourage positive environmental and economic practices and the preservation of regional customs. There are, of course, plenty of other great producers making incredible mezcal in this vein, but consider this list—most of which are widely available across the United States—a strong starting point.

Cinco Sentidos

What started as the house mezcal for El Destilado restaurant in Oaxaca City evolved into an export brand in 2017. Owner Jason Cox has cultivated long-standing relationships with a core lineup of producers in Oaxaca and Puebla during his time living in Mexico. With Cinco Sentidos, he pays above market price for batches and does not pressure producers to meet certain volume demands; it is entirely up to the producers how much they choose to make and sell. Cox also implemented a 10 percent profit-sharing program to help producers invest in everything from basic personal needs to land and distillery infrastructure.

Where There's Smoke: Mezcal is Booming in the Cocktail World

Food Network Magazine - May, 2021

Visit any serious cocktail bar or well-stocked liquor store and you'll likely encounter mezcal.

The smoky Mexican liquor, distilled from the roasted hearts of agave plants, has long been central to Oaxacan culture but has more recently become a stateside obsession: America imports more mezcal than any other country in the world, with sales having grown 77 percent since 2017, according to the Distilled Spirits Council. Mixologists have helped fuel the boom by creating new mezcal cocktails, although many fans also drink Mezcal the traditional way: at room temperature with salt and an orange slice.

Bottle To Try:

Cinco Sentidos, Papalometl Mezcal - The agave is fermented in rawhide, a local tradition.

NEAL BODENHEIMER'S OLD HICKORY

Mastering the Old Hickory With Neal Bodenheimer

The obscure vermouth classic gets retooled with an eye toward more flavor and less dilution.

The “raisinated vibe” and wormwood bitterness of La Quintinye Blanc forms one half of the 50/50 vermouth split.

If you’ve never heard of the Old Hickory, you’re not alone. A simple 50/50 mix of sweet and dry vermouths punched up with bitters, this low-proof classic has long existed in the shadow of the Bamboo and Adonis. Neal Bodenheimer wants to put it center stage.

Though he started workshopping the drink at his New Orleans bar Cure, he “really dug in,” as he describes the process, on the Old Hickory for Dauphine’s, a New Orleans–inspired bar and seafood restaurant slated to open this spring in Washington, D.C.. “It felt modern, and like things I wanted to drink,” he explains of the simple build. However, “it felt like a cocktail that never really got its due.”

Part of the New Orleans canon of cocktails, the Old Hickory first appeared in print in Stanley Clisby Arthur’s 1937 book, Famous New Orleans Drinks And How to Mix ’Em. Supposedly, “Old Hickory” was a nickname given to General (and later U.S. president) Andrew Jackson, a reference to his fortitude as he led troops through the Battle of New Orleans in the winter of 1814-15. Although Arthur writes that the drink was Jackson’s “favorite tipple,” Bodenheimer dismisses the claim: “I don’t think people were drinking vermouth in America in 1850.”

Though his vision for the Dauphine’s interpretation is a pre-batched version, Bodenheimer preserves elements of the cocktail-making ritual. The format coalesced at an event held at New York’s James Beard House in September 2019, intended as a preview for Dauphine’s. For the seated dinner with cocktail pairings, Bodenheimer sought out food-friendly pours, and the vermouth-forward Old Hickory seemed like a natural fit. Yet, stirred with ice, it felt too thin and watered-down. The solution was to pre-batch the vermouths and refrigerate the mixture until ready to serve. Bitters were stirred in at the last minute—“bitters expand in a batch over time, so I keep them out,” says Bodenheimer—and the mixture was then poured over a large ice cube and quickly served. The end result presented like a cocktail, but retained the texture of wine.

“We said, ‘What if we made it like an Old-Fashioned setup, and less like a vermouth cocktail?’” he recalls. “We always had our vermouth in the fridge anyway, so we always had a chilled vermouth bottle.”