A few weeks ago I travelled to Bruges, Belgium. I was going to have a Belgian beer with my friend Rick, who, as you might know by now, travels with a bottle for me.
In this case the mezcal artesanal Ilegal.
This mezcal carries a label that states some stuff I need to investigate. First of al, there is a statement that this is an unaged mezcal. I do know some mezcals have the luxury of bein aged on a barrel, but I have not been lucky enough to try those. Does it mean that joven mezcal is always unaged when bottled? I need to read up on my knowledge. Secondly it carries the words "sin prisa". This basically means "without a hurry",  and that confused me. What was done without a hurry? The distillation?  So much more to investigate and to read up on.

This mezcal was bottled at 40% Vol. Is in the category Joven and I own bottle 03643/13680 of Lot 284. It comes from Tlacolula, Oaxaca, and is a single maguey. Specifically Espadin, which is the Agave Angustifolia.

On the nose I get warm agave notes and some Granny Smith apples. I also get some basil and pepper.
The taste is a blast of everything at once: Fresh mint, lemon zest, and lime pinned with cloves. Al chased by some heat and a very light smoke.
the finish is rather short, but leaves the smoke wrestling the fresher and sweeter notes on the tongue, eventually relenting to the fruity notes.

I'm still not sure why this is illegal.