I was reading this over a cup of terrible hotel coffee in Oakland. Mezcal market is expected to hit $2.13 billion by 2036 — UK growing at 15.6% a year, US at 14.7%. That’s faster than my last relationship recovered from a bad text.
Funny thing is, I watched this happen in Oaxaca twenty years ago. It was just farmers, clay pots, and fire. Now it’s investors, influencers, and ‘terroir consultants’ arguing about whether a smoky note comes from agave or existential dread.
The numbers don’t lie. But neither does the taste — and lately, the taste has started tasting like a press release.
