OTRA VEZ ESTA MALDITA FELICIDAD
Once again, this damn happiness!
¡Feliz 2014!
Time to catch up! Here at Pierde Almas,
2013 proved to be a year of great progress— with many steps forward, a few
steps back and hundreds of new friends
walking beside us. At some point during
this magical journey, you became a highly
valued part of our team. So, as we start
the new year, we’d like to offer a round of
applause for your support and wish you
considerable damn happiness throughout
the coming year.
January, 2013—The horno (earth oven) being readied
for the first bake of the year.
(Photo: Daniel Robles)
Mezcal Pierde Almas may currently be
found in the US, Canada, Europe, Australia
and Japan— but its soul remains steeped in
the mystical mountains, cultures and traditions of southern Mexico. Following family
recipes and practices that have remained unchanged through a multitude of generations,
Mezcal Pierde Almas comes to light in a remote Zapotec village called San Balthazar
Chichicapan, in a family-run distillery we
call Ñiza Tay, Blessed Waters.
Pierde Almas’ Maestro Mezcalero Alfonso Sánchez
inherited the secrets of the world’s best mezcal
from his father Don Faustino Sánchez.
(Photo: Daniel Robles)
In January, Jonathan traveled to New York for
both the business and the pleasure of accepting the
New York Latin Culture Award. Later he encountered his likeness— along with that of other award
recipients— gracing one of the giant screens in
Times Square. How many people get to see that?
Many thanks to the extended Pierde Almas family for their
dedicated and meticulous work.
That Magic Number 9...
Back in 2011, Jonathan flashed upon a fusionary first: mezcal-based gin. He spent months in his kitchen hovering
over a mortar and pestle, crushing and blending endless variations of the 9 classic botanicals used to give gin its
distinctive flavor.
Crushing and blending botanicals by hand.
Adding the botanical blend to double-distilled Mezcal Pierde Almas
for a third distillation.
By the beginning of 2013, he had perfected his recipe, combining the plants in their ideal proportions and adding them
to 50-liter batches of Pierde Almas Mezcal de Espadine for a third distillation. The result? Mezcal Magic…. Followed
by reviews like this from Men’s Journal and the following from the highly regarded diffordsguide.com:
Click the icon above for the full review and tasting notes.
On May 10, Pierde Almas launched the new
Mezcal Gin in Mexico City with help from
renowned Chef Pedro Martin at la Taberna
Capote and Martin Arvallo at Bang Bang.
Twelve days later, the same spirit was
launched in the U.S. as Mezcal +9 during a
well-attended press event hosted by Tom
Richter and The Beagle in New York City.
Jonathan also introduced the new spirit
through a series of Mezcal Master Classes
in New York, Boston, Miami, Orlando, San
Francisco and Los Angeles, as well as his
adopted hometown of Oaxaca City, Mexico.
In July, he brought +9 to Tales of the Cocktail, pouring for visitors in The Finer Side of
Mexico and Indie Spirits tasting rooms.
Photo: Daniel Robles
U.S. Distribution: Early in 2013, Mezcal Pierde Almas partnered
with Altamar Brands LLC, a highly selective U.S. importer with a
first-class distribution network. The initial shipment to Altamar
left Oaxaca last March and in the ensuing nine months, over 5000
cases have followed. Pierde Almas is now being distributed in 18
states with more to follow next year.
Additionally, Young’s Market in California recently facilitated a
strategic partnership between Altamar and BevMo!, the leading
alcoholic beverage retailer in the western United States. As a
result, Pierde Almas will soon be sold in 40 BevMo! stores with
plans to expand to all 130 California outlets by the end of 2014.
Jonathan Barbieri with Lyons Brown, CEO of Altamar Brands
(Photo: Daniel Robles)
(Photo: Daniel Robles)
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New International Markets: At Pierde Almas, we are continually seeking to inform new palates of Oaxaca’s most coveted cultural tradition.
Our mezcal has gained devotees all over the world and this year we are
especially thrilled to have partnered with two more importers: Vertumnus
(Amathus Drinks PLC) in the United Kingdom and And Mezcal in Japan.
In addition, our brand ambassador, Igor Polonskiy traveled to Russia
where he introduced Mezcal Pierde Almas at the World Foods Expo in
Moscow and at Russian Bar 812 in St Petersburg.
Ready for the World Foods Expo in Moscow.
Our Brand Ambassador to
Russia, Egor Polonskiy,
introduced fine craft
mezcal to an appreciative
audience in St. Petersburg.
A highly dedicated
group of people
traveled to Oaxaca
to help ensure the
future of Mezcal
de Tobala.
(Photos: Daniel
Robles)
To see more
photos click on the
icon below:
Our annual wild Tobala reforestation project became an international effort when attendees of Jonathan’s Master
Classes in New York, Miami and Orlando suggested that they could help ensure the future of this rare agave by traveling
to Oaxaca to help with the planting.
Aero Mexico, Mexico’s number one airline, provided generous fare assistance to the program’s 10 participants whose
mission was of ecological, economic and cultural importance to the country.
Working alongside Jonathan and Maestro Mezcalero Alfonso Sanchez, the American crew helped plant over 1000 baby
Tobala Plants in the mountains outside San Baltazar Chichicapan. When their labors were finished, they had time to do a
little sightseeing (Central Oaxaca City is a World Heritage Site), got an insider’s tour of Ñiza Tay, the Sanchez family’s
distillery where Pierde Almas is made, and were treated to a meal of traditional pit-roasted goat.
Casa Pierde Almas
One of the very exciting events
of 2013 was the opening of
Casa Pierde Almas, our private
mezcal tasting salon. The location is a bit clandestine, but we
can tell you that it’s located in a classic mid-colonial era house
(early 17th-19th centuries) in the Centro Historico de Oaxaca.
As you might expect, the passing of a few hundred years, left the
house in need of refurbishing— a task that we undertook with
great respect for the historical value. We were able to preserve
most of the original structure, including the thick adobe walls,
floors and wooden window shutters.
Casa Pierde Almas is open by appointment only to serious students of hand-crafted mezcal. Here, individuals and groups can
sample the various expressions of Mezcal Pierde Almas during a
private master class on the history, varieties and traditions of true
artisan mezcal.
(Photos: Daniel Robles)
Casa Pierde Almas Sala de Degustación, Tasting Salón,
by appointment only: +52 1 951 569 0797
English and Spanish spoken.
In 2013, a number of well-known chefs
found their way to Ñiza Tay.
On July 2nd, Rick Bayless— award-winning
chef of Chicago’s Frontera Grill and
Topobolobampo—toured the Pierde Almas
distillery with a crew of associates. Jonathan
had the pleasure of describing the centuriesold process of mezcal production and providing them with an up-close view of traditional
tools, including the pit-oven, horse-drawn
millstone, wooden fermentation vats and
copper alembics.
Rick Bayless and crew pose with Jonathan after a tour of Ñiza Tay.
(Photo: Daniel Robles)
Chefs David Burke, Andrew Carmelini, Johnny Iuzzini, Conor Hanlon and
Julian Medina join papier-mâché chefs at “El Saber del Sabor”.
In September, renowned chefs David Burke
(celebrity chef/ The Burke Group), Andrew
Carmellini (The Dutch, The Dutch Miami,
Lafayette, Locande Verde, etc.) Johnny
Iuzzini (Top Chef: Just Desserts/ Restaurant
Jean Georges), Conor Hanlon (The Dutch
Miami) and Julian Medina (Toloache, Yerba
Buena, Yerba Buena Perry) attended the
first night of El Saber del Sabor— the
Oaxacan culinary festival organized by chef
Alejandro Ruiz (Casa Oaxaca Restaurant &
Hotel). Their tour was part of the Mezcal
from Oaxaca program which was created to
preserve the ancient traditions and unique
culture surrounding artisan mezcal while
promoting its consumption in the U.S. The
five chefs joined Jonathan for an in-depth
tour of the Pierde Almas distillery and, while
there, helped prepare a traditional Oaxacan
meal of grilled quail and carne asada.
Below: Putting their shoulders to the wheel, Chefs David Burke and Conor Hanlon give Ñiza Tay’s horse a break. The hand-cut millstone used to
crush the piñas (cooked agave hearts) weighs over a thousand pounds.
Trade Shows
Throughout the year, Jonathan travelled heavily to attend
major trade shows held across the country. Through master
classes, tasting booths and large-scale presentations, he
promoted, not just his own brand, but fine artisan mezcal as
a whole.
Tales of the Cocktail— The world’s premier cocktail and
spirits show, “Tales” also proved to be a main event for Pierde
Almas. In “The Finer Side of Mexico” exhibit hall, Jonathan
gave a talk and tasting to a large group of industry insiders
after which he and founding partner Fausto Rasero poured
Pierde Almas for hundreds of visitors to the Indie Spirits tasting room. (photo, right)
Jonathan with founding partner Fausto Rasero (right) at
Tales of the Cocktail.
(Photo: David Vallejo)
New York Times Travel Show— Held at the Jacob J.
Jarvits Convention Center in January, this spectacular
celebration of international travel was a significant
opportunity for Mezcal from Oaxaca. Jonathan helped
out by giving a talk about the making of fine artisan
mezcal, it’s history, traditions and culture.
Presenting on behalf of “Mezcal from Oaxaca”, Jonathan took the stage
at the New York Times Travel Show.
(Photo: David Vallejo)
Travel and Leisure Show— Showcasing upscale travel and cuisine at The Armory— a historic Beau Arts venue in
New York City— this event gave Pierde Almas a chance to convert hundreds of visitors into mezcal aficionados.
New York Indie Spirits Expo and
Manhattan Cocktails Classic— In
May, Jonathan joined forces with
Yira Vallejo, director of the “Mezcal
from Oaxaca” program, to present a
mezcal master class and tasting at the
exclusive Penn Club in midtown
Manhattan. They presented their seminar to attendees of the general MCC
conference, as well. (photo, left)
During the Manhattan Cocktails Classic,
Jonathan and “Mezcal from Oaxaca’s” Yira
Vallejo (right) also presented a seminar on
fine artisan mezcal at the Andaz Hotel.
(Photo: David Vallejo)
Swallow Magazine, is an artful, innovative and awardwinning food and travel magazine that publishes biannually,
focusing each issue on the cuisine of a specific city or region
of the world. For it’s third issue, the honors went to Mexico
City. Pierde Almas was given the honor of providing the mezcal and mezcal-gin for the two launch dinners that were held in
Mexico City and New York.
The New York launch doubled as the inaugural event
for RES, a new chef-in-residence venue in Brooklyn.
For this event, a fabulous dinner was prepared by
chefs from two of Mexico City’s top restaurants: Chef
Gabriela Camára (Contramar ) and Chef Jair Téllez
(Mero Toro ).
Among the luminaries in attendance was Martha
Stuart, who was observed photographing the lineup
of Pierde Almas +9.
In the Arts:
Liquid Courage, a beautiful and brief documentary by journalist Gabriel
Leigh features Pierde Almas founder Jonathan Barbieri, Maestro
Mezcalaro Miguel Sanchez and our distillery Ñiza Tay .
Click to watch Liquid Courage:
On September 22, Oaxacan-American
singer and songwriter Lila Downs performed at The Greek Theater in Los
Angeles with a bottle of Mezcal Pierde
Almas. Pierde Almas sponsored the
opening mezcal ceremony and provided
mezcal for the backstage crew and musicians at Downs’ recording sessions.
Mezcal Pierde Almas has received considerable praise and publicity over the last several years, but the unsolicited song
la Corrida de Pierde Almas by Wenceslao Garcia Santos and Los Aces del Campo was truly a high note for us. Take a
listen:
la Corrida de Pierde Almas
Lyrics: Wenceslao Garcia Santos
Music: Los Aces del Campo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OSQ8xrCsd8&feature=youtu.be
Finally, we are deeply grateful to all who have been a part of Pierde Almas, joining us at this great confluence of traditional culture and modern commerce. We wish you all good health, great love and prosperity in the New Year and we
hope that you awaken each day with these words on your lips:
Otra vez esta maldita felicidad! Once again, this damn happiness!