Justina Ruiz Perez proudly holding her mezcal in the village of Sola de Vega

"Very often, mezcal production is the effort of an entire family with sons, daughters and mothers involved in the process. Casa Cortés is a family business and we value the importance of recognizing the contribution of women in the mezcal industry. I am proud to shine a light on the hard work of Justina Ruiz Perez." said Casa Cortés Founder and CEO, Rolando Cortés.

Mezcal production is done as a team, but the role of the Master Mezcalera is to make all the production decisions that accumulate and influence the taste of the final product. Including practical considerations, such as how long to keep the agave in the oven, when to stop fermentation and the ABV of the final product. Because of the traditional nature of the production process, these decisions are often done by feeling and instinct, adding the personality of the producer to the spirit.

Clay pot still set up in Sola de Vega

"Ancestral mezcal represents the purest and most traditional form of mezcal production. The typically small batch sizes limit the availability of this mezcal, but we felt it was important to add it to our line of El Jolgorio mezcals so we could share this piece of our culture with the world."

Sola de Vega is located in Oaxaca's lush Sierra Sur mountain range and has long been known for its traditional ancestral production process. Ancestral mezcal production is labor intensive and features no technology. It typically involves milling agave by hand using large wooden mallets, fermenting in wooden tinas or animal skins and distilling using clay pots. Because of the small size of the clay pots used in the distillation process, the yield per batch can be very small, making this type of mezcal inherently unique.

What it means to Monica to add the first woman to the El Jolgorio family of producers

"I am very happy to be adding Justina's mezcal to our El Jolgorio line of mezcals. She has a bright personality that I think comes through in her mezcal." said Casa Cortés Global Brand Ambassador, Monica Bautista Cortés. "As a woman working in mezcal, I understand that it can be difficult and some aspects of the industry are wrongly considered man's work. I am proud that Casa Cortés is breaking from that paradigm and happy for the hard work other producers and companies have done to help bring a focus on the important work of women in mezcal"