Origen Raiz Cenizo is made with maguey Cenizo (Agave durangensis) by mezcalero Ignacio Grijalva Santiago, who is also known as Don Nacho. Though originally from Oaxaca, he moved to Durango with his family to run the palenque at Rancho El Ojo. Cosme Gabriel Simental also helps with the mezcal production. There are also some bottles made by mezcalero Noe Ramirez Varela.  All of the bottles and batches we’ve seen have come from Rancho El Ojo, which is full of wild agave, sotol, and nopal plants. The ranch lies just outside the Sierra de Órganos National Park, at an elevation of approximately 6,350 feet. The agave used in this mezcal are smoked in underground ovens, crushed by mule-drawn tahona, fermented in open-air oak tanks, and double distilled in copper stills.

Origen Raiz del Espiritu Mezcal

Origen Raíz is a partnership between two distinct sets of Mexican roots. The Saravia family of Durango has a long history of working to improve the local economy through business, and the Cortés family of Oaxaca brings six generations of knowledge in mezcal production. The families were brought together by their sons, Asis Cortés and Bildo Saravia, through passion for their culture and respect for their heritage. Asis is well known for some of his other projects like Mezcal Dixeebe, and he was previously involved with his family’s other brands of Oaxacan-based mezcal: El Jolgorio, Nuestra Soledad, and Agave de Cortes. The family also operates a mezcaleria named Mezcalogia and Asis has a restaurant named Puro Burro in Oaxaca City.