“Like this,” Ricardo instructs dipping his fingertip into the shot glass of mezcal before tapping the fingertip to his other palm and then rubbing his hands together. Then he covers his nose with both hands and takes a long, deep, satisfied breath. “It’s like a perfume, no?” Carlos, Agave’s Chef and Ricardo’s co-founder, interjects proudly.
Đọc bài viết bằng tiếng Việt
Mezcal is hot right now. COA in Hong Kong was recently named Asia’s Best Bar, fulfilling owner Jay Khan’s ambition to showcase the richness of agave spirits. And headlines globally have been full of mezcal’s purported health benefits. Added to that mezcal is usually hand-crafted in small batches, and it’s diverse and complex in flavor too. That’s why it’s been called tequila’s classy, artisanal cousin. What’s not to love?
“OK, now try drinking it like this,” Ricardo says continuing with the tuition. Right on cue, Carlos Bravo, former Chef de Cuisine of the JW Marriot Phu Quoc, sits three shot glasses of Montelobos Espadin mezcal on the Agave Saigon bar. “Take a sip and swirl it round your mouth and swallow,” he says demonstrating with the first shot. “Now this second sip will reveal far more flavor.” It does – there’s the smokiness typical of mezcal plus some soft fruit and vanilla notes amongst the rich, satisfying smoothness that’s a world away from the cheap, bracing tequilas we’re used to.
Mezcal vs Tequila
Tequila is a kind of mezcal – mezcal being the catch-all term for any alcohol made from agave. But tequila and mezcal are geographically different drinks (with a little overlap). And they’re produced, distilled and labelled differently – mezcal producers love to describe the production process in detail on their labels: organically cultivated Espadin…wild fermentation in open pine vats…milled by a mule pulled stone.
So tequila is a particular kind of mezcal that’s made from a single agave variety, weber blue agave, whereas mezcal can be made from many types of agave (around 50 but often Espadin). And only spirits made in five states, Jalisco, Nayarit, Tamaulipas, Michoacan, and Guanajuato can call themselves tequila. Most mezcal comes from Oaxaca, but really it can come from any of nine different states.
And unlike tequila, mezcaleros roast the hearts of the agave, the pineapple-looking piña, in underground pits before the hearts are milled to a pulp as part of a 500-year-old process that gives it that artisanal edge. The finished product, which hovers between 40-50 ABV, is a pure agave spirit, unlike tequila which is only required to be 50% agave. And compared to other spirits, like some whiskies and brandies, mezcal isn’t watered down after distillation to hit a regulated 40% ABV, hence its variable alcohol level.
Carlos dips the rim of a glass in sal de gusano, a kind of chilli silk worm salt made from the worms that live in the agave plant; the ones you sometimes see bobbing in the bottom of mezcal bottles, then shakes up a mezcal-based cocktail. After sliding it across the bar, he gets to work on a Michelada, the Mexican version of a Bloody Mary.
Los Pipirisnais
We’re getting sidetracked. We really came here to Agave Saigon, the space that was formerly Rogue Saigon’s taproom – the cool craft beer spot is busy expanding their rooftop space upstairs – to eat. Back on track and by way of introduction, Carlos breaks down Mexican food by region. “On the Pacific coast you get seafood, ceviches, in the north grilling – lots of the black Angus in The States comes from this region – and then around Guerrero, Oaxaca and Chiapas you get moles and a kind of mozzarella cheese, Oaxaca cheese…” before returning fondly to his and Ricardo’s birthplace, Mexico City. “We love tacos, man. We’ll often eat standing up. Ten minutes and we’re gone. Salaries are low, the intensity is high, so they serve these big, loaded tacos for 50 cents each. Two and you’re good to go,” he shrugs.
“Here, we do still do serve tacos too,” Carlos adds. But his ambition is to explore more diverse elevated Mexican cuisine, the stuff they’re testing out in the tapas section of the Agave menu: “But Tacos are what everyone knows.” Currently, as tapas, there’s Bone Marrow with Tuna Tatar (“because we actually eat a lot of bone marrow in Mexico”), Huevos Rancheros with Wagyu Beef Shank, Tostada Crab Tinga, and Croquetas of Cochinita Pibil that combines Yucatan-style slow-roast pork with the classic Spanish tapas dish.
He’s even more excited about the ‘Los Pipirisnais’ section. This fun expression “kind of means fancy, or nouveau riche, or something…” Carlos scratches his head struggling to find the right adjective. In this section is Lamb Barbacoa, Tacos Villa Melon, Carne Asada, and Octopus With Crispy Pork. All of it is licked by the fire and smoke of Agave’s big wood-fired grill. “Grilling and smoky flavors are so integral to lots of Mexican cooking even though many Mexican restaurants prepare their food in the pan only…” he says pulling a banana-leaf-wrapped tamale out of the embers.
Chef Carlos is also playing around with pairings too. But not in a fussy way. “I might just serve a corona with tacos, then send out mezcals and tequilas with different dishes.”
They say “tequila is to wake the living and mezcal is to wake the dead” and with a shelf full of both, Agave Saigon looks like it’s going to bring some life to this sleepy end of Pasteur street.
Photos for The Dot Magazine by Nghia Ngo.
Due to current lockdown restrictions, you can order from Agave Saigon at their Facebook page.
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