Traditional Mezcal Distillery Visit
Oaxaca, Mexico
About This Activity
Visit a family-owned mezcal palenque in the Oaxaca hills to see the ancestral production process: agave hearts roasted in underground pits, crushed by horse-drawn tahona, and distilled in copper or clay stills. Taste 5-8 expressions from espadín to wild agave varieties. Most guided tours ($40-50 USD) combine the distillery with Mitla ruins or Hierve el Agua. Santiago Matatlán, the 'world capital of mezcal,' is 45 minutes from Oaxaca city.
Seasonal note: Year-round; production peaks Nov-Mar
See This in an Itinerary
This activity appears in 112 of our curated itineraries.
Best 5 Days in Mexico — Food & Wine
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara
Best 5 Days in Mexico — Workation
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara
Best 5 Days in Mexico — Without Adventure
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara
Best 5 Days in Mexico — Without Photography
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara
Best 7 Days in Mexico — Food & Wine
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara → Monterrey → San Miguel de Allende
Best 7 Days in Mexico — Workation
Mexico City → Oaxaca → Guadalajara → Monterrey → San Miguel de Allende
More Activities in Oaxaca
Monte Albán Archaeological Site
Explore Monte Albán's mountaintop Zapotec pyramids overlooking Oaxaca Valley
Hierve el Agua Natural Pools
Swim in cliff-edge mineral pools above petrified waterfalls at Hierve el Agua
Oaxacan Textile Weaving Villages
Visit Zapotec weaving villages to watch artisans use backstrap looms
Mitla Archaeological Site
Explore Mitla's palatial ruins famous for intricate geometric stone mosaics
El Árbol del Tule (World's Widest Tree)
Visit the world's widest tree -- a 2,000-year-old Montezuma cypress
Free Day in Oaxaca
Linger in markets, sip mezcal, and discover Oaxaca's slow rhythms