Erstwhile Mezcal is a boutique agave spirits importer out of Brooklyn, NY founded by Yuan Ji and Kevin J. Brown. Their focus is to advocate for small, independent, family-owned producers who lack representation outside of their local markets, and bring them into the international distillate scene they so deserve.

They work closely with their partners to assist them in guiding the complicated process of export... Covering expenses related to attorneys, accountants, license fees - absorbing the producers marketing and supply chain costs as their own.

Every bottle of Erstwhile sold creates jobs in the local Mexican communities, enabling the producers to hire their own team of local men and women. When you sip Erstwhile, you support their partners and partake in their family traditions. You experience the complexities and flavors of a slow, timeless art that's been honed and passed down through generations...

THE MEZCALEROS

Epifania Gómez Mejía & Silverio García Luis Three-generation Mezcal family of Zapotec heritage, based in Rancho Blanco Güilá, Oaxaca. Epifania did not grow up in a Mezcal family, but learned the ropes and became a master distiller of her own right. She was recognized as a Woman in Mezcal by the Mezcal Regulatory Council (CRM) in Mexico in 2020. Silverio’s father, renowned master mezcalero Lorenzo Antonio García, was recognized as a Cultural Treasure of Mezcal by the CRM in 2016 – a rare honor reserved for the few masters who have preserved the virtuosity of artisanal mezcal production for at least 60 years.

Juan Abel Quiroz Agustín Born and raised in Santa María Sola where he still resides, Abel saved for years before achieving the dream of building his own palenque next to his house. He has proudly run his own palenque since around 2009. Santa María Sola is a municipality in the district of Sola de Vega, in the Sierra Sur region of Oaxaca. Following the tradition of Sola de Vega, Abel distills exclusively with clay pots and makes some of the most unforgettable ancestral mezcal expressions we know.

Hortensia Hernández Martínez A master distiller of Zapotec heritage from a five-generation Mezcal family, Hortensia heads her women-owned, women-led family distillery in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca. She and her daughters have taken the reins of the family business, bringing their own aesthetics and business acumen after the tragic passing of Hortensia’s husband - the late master mezcalero Juan Hernández Méndez - in 2020.

Lucas García Family Nine-generation Mezcal family from San Isidro Guishe in the southern highlands of Oaxaca. Of all Erstwhile partner producers, the Lucas García family is perhaps the most focused on legacy: looking beyond the present day, focusing on sustainability, and passing on the family’s collective knowledge and traditions to future generations. José and Clara are the patriarch and matriarch. Their sons Mario and Chano head the family distillery. Grandson Diego, the 9th generation, joined the family business after graduating from college.