Mezcal may be valued as a handicraft and be sold at a higher price

Santiago Suárez, president, and co-founder of Casa Amarás assured that there are strong growth opportunities for mezcal.

Suárez is behind a company that was born in 2011 and has taken mezcal to international markets; during the toast season, the executive is confident that the celebrations will be positive for the category. Going forward, the executive predicted that mezcal will continue to gain ground and become an increasingly premium beverage.

Both in the local and international markets, mezcal’s popularity is increasing and although it is difficult for it to reach the production volumes of tequila, the expectation is that it will be sold at a higher price.

“There are several countries in which mezcal is appreciated as something more premium and more artisanal than tequila and it is having a lot of popularity. So, in some countries it is having more surplus value. It will not reach the volume of tequila, but the value will be much higher,” said the businessman.

The mezcal industry is consolidating, to produce it and reach the best sales showcases, working with producing communities, seeking to be valued as a craft and to preserve the diversity of the agaves with which it is made.

Suárez pointed out that, in the case of Mezcal Amarás, they saw the opportunity for growth when they discovered that there are more than 22 agave species compared to one tequila species: “that led us to launch mezcal, initially in Mexico, where we were one of the pioneer brands. And we grew it to more than 30 countries where we are now”.