An endangered view? Will places like this, at Wahaka Mezcal and smaller palenques in Mexico cease to exist if NOM 199 passes? Maybe.
It’s a Mezcal Monday, so let me start by saying this… I love mezcal. Especially artisinal mezcal.
I think the beauty of mezcal is best embodied by the men and women whose hands both touch and craft this wonderful beverage. Part of the “it” factor with mezcal is the fact that these modern day artisans work their magic, in many cases, the same way their ancestors did generations ago. Many from the exact same house where they live today.
You just cannot discount all of the personal history and care that goes into a great bottle of mezcal.
And yet, we may be on the verge of losing traditional mezcal to the world of technology. To machines. To corporate greed and a desire to control the market.
We are talking NOM 199, a proposed change to the way mezcal is understood, classified, marketed and maybe even made in Mexico.
Yesterday I received a note from John McEvoy on the the dangers of NOM 199. Many of you know John as the Mezcal PhD. Please take a moment to read his note, and then GO SIGN THE PETITION TO SAVE TRADITIONAL MEZCAL.
Here it is…
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“Dear Dave, I am not sure if you have heard what certain power brokers are trying to pull off in Mexico, but it is an affront to the deep tradition of mezcal and all it stands for historically.
There is a blasphemous proposal, called NOM 199, where they are effectively trying to eliminate the use of the term “agave” for spirits that are produced outside the mezcal and tequila DOs.
Today, these traditional producers outside of the denomination of origin regions, can call their product “Destilado de Agave”, and can tell us what type of agave was used and label it accordingly.
This is not perfect for the producers because they cannot call it mezcal, but at least they can tell us what is in the bottle.
NOM 199 eliminates their ability to use the term “agave” and they have to call this spirit “Komil”. What is komil? Well, no one really knows. It makes no sense and consumers will have no idea what is in the bottle.
You can read more about it here on my blog post from last month.
In addition, the Tequila Interchange Project (TIP), recently posted another summary and petition as we are in the home stretch of the comment period to defeat this proposal. Comments are due by April 29!! You can find the new TIP position here.
If you care about mezcal and its honored tradition, please sign and make your voice heard!!”
Best,
John (aka Mezcal PhD)
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So don’t put it off. The time to sign the petition ends on April 29, just days ahead. And if you want more info, check out my earlier post!
Dave Miller's Mexico 
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