Meet the mezcalero of January 2022, German Manzano Martínez. German moved to Zoquitlan 11 years ago although he started to make mezcal over 37 years ago at the age of 19. After marrying his wife of 38 years at the age of 18, it was time for him to start making his own money he says. He also farms a wide assortment of crops beyond the usual corn and beans including avocado, coconut, orange, grenadine, mangos, and chico zapote. He has 3 sons, one of which was working side by side with him, but recently, at the age of 27, he has ventured out on his own leaving German solo on the palenque with his wife. As the many portrait photos this month will indicate, German is a happy and loving man that isn’t slowing down his production anytime soon, despite the recent setbacks of the pandemic and losing his apprentice. This will be the first time the club presents the infamously foamy and imperfect jabali batch, something that has been a long time in the making. German tried a pure Jabali batch in a different community decades ago and decided to start making it in Zoicitlan. He claims to be the first Zoiquitlan producer to work with pure Jabali and not an ensemble Jabali like his father had. We will learn much more about all of Jabali’s nuances this month! In the comments, find a link to our newsletter telling how we met German via our bodega team taking us on a trip to their hometown.
