The patience required for barrel aging is rewarded with a fuller, more concentrated and complex mezcal. Notes of vanilla and oak contribute a new aroma, flavor and sweetness that delicately balance with the smoke and maguey.

Xicaru, the Zapotec word for beautiful, reflects Fernando Santibaezs desire to share a traditionally produced mezcal that is approachable and distinct. Using his grandmothers recipe, Fernando makes small batches of Xicaru Mezcal with time-honored methods at a palenque in Matatln, Oaxaca.