Our take
Vida is the mezcal to learn on. Smoke, but not bonfire smoke — roasted pineapple, charred lime rind, wet dirt, green pepper. The espadin agave is roasted in underground pits lined with volcanic rock, which is where the smoke comes from and why mezcal and tequila taste nothing alike.
Use it the way a bartender would: a bar spoon floated on top of a Margarita turns the drink into a mezcal Margarita. Or go all-in and mix a Mezcal Paloma, or a Division Bell, or drink it neat at room temperature with an orange slice and a pinch of chilli salt.
What to mix it with
Mezcal Margarita, Mezcal Paloma, Oaxaca Old Fashioned, Division Bell, Naked & Famous. Straight at room temperature with orange and sal de gusano.
Background
Del Maguey was founded by American artist Ron Cooper in 1995. He travelled to remote villages in Oaxaca and began bottling mezcal from individual palenques (distilleries), each labelled with the village name. Vida is the entry-level expression, made to be mixed.