OAXACA: Mezcal, Mole and Flying

Oaxaca City is the mecca for Mexican cuisine; the flavors, the Ingredients, the tradition… See how Mole and Mezcal are made in a place that is rich with hospitality and Mexican tradition.

By KAVU

January 28^th, 2020

Oaxaca City

is a place where art, culture, music, food, and history truly blend together to create a feeling larger than any one part of the tapestry. Art and craftsmanship flourishes for numerous reasons, including an ethnically diverse indigenous population, that some postulate, have been able to keep their roots intact compared to their easily accessible neighboring states; due to rugged and isolating terrain. This is the exact type of terrain that is ideal for mountain enthusiasts. When mountains meet culture is when KAVU days abound.

We found the city to be an absolute delight with its fascinating mixture of culture, colonial architecture, art, music, mezcal, and INCREDIBLE culinary variety. Being the home of numerous chocolate creators, artist collectives, mezcal distilleries, and famous mole restraints, one would be hard pressed to not be enthralled at the variety in culture and art that permeates life in this region. They are also North America’s leader in utilizing crickets in creative ways for numerous culinary delights.

Tyler Bradt and I heard about a fly in above the town of Oaxaca and were enticed by the promise of adventure, great food including world-class mole, good friends from Mexico. We met Estefano Salgado and Alejandro Murrieta to share our common passion, paragliding, and learn about the deep cultural roots that the state of Oaxaca is known for. There are 7 main moles although there are literally countless family recipes. Check out the 7 most famous here.

Insects are the best protein!

Estefano Salgado shows us the insects that flavor many Oaxaxan meals.

MEZCAL RISING

In the last fifteen years Mezcal has exploded onto the international dining scene and while Tequila has to be from the state of Jalisco to take that moniker, i.e…. bourbon is from Kentucky; Mezcal is produced in numerous states. Increasingly, it comes from artisanal distilleries in the state of Oaxaca. According to mezcal officiado Max Falkowitz, “All tequila comes from a single variety of agave: the mild-mannered blue weber. Mezcal, on the other hand, can be made from dozens of agave varieties, and each has its own character, which may express itself completely differently depending on how the mezcal is produced and where the plants are grown. The Mexican states of Durango, Guerrero, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Puebla, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, and Zacatecas are permitted to call their agave spirits mezcal, and as climate, elevation, and soil composition vary, so too does the resulting spirit.”

THE JOVEN

Many hard-core mezcal drinkers believe the Joven is the best way to taste the true nature of the producer, and the agaves of that particular harvest/batch. Luckily it is also the most affordable way to taste many mezcals.

GET LOCAL

When asked about trips, 90 percent of traveller's know that it is the people we meet on the road that create the rich experience we all crave and grow from. I guarantee there are people all over the world doing the same thing you are and with a little bit of planning, everyone can meet up with like minded locals and get a true glimpse into a culture unlike one’s own. If you scuba dive, check out scuba clubs overseas, if you are into chess, next time you travel, hit up the local chess club in Florence. As you know, the sharing of a passion transcends language and location and forms a great basis to understand each other on a more complete level.

Meeting up with Estefano and Alejandro opened our eyes and hearts to the utter beauty of this region in Mexico. While the languages and flavors are different, the thing that you get a clear understanding when traveling with locals is that lives as lived are really the same.

A huge congrats, as well, to Estefano Salgado for winning the biggest paragliding competition in Mexico just a week ago. Well deserved…can’t wait to host you in the US!