Michoacán in the Mezcal Denomination of Origin: the Story of Don Lupe

This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)

There are stories that are told by the warmth of the stove, with a glass of mezcal in hand and eyes lost on the horizon of the mountains. Stories that are not only told, but felt. One of them is that of Don Lupe, the man who not only distilled mezcal, but also resistance, memory, and hope.

The Origin of a Legend

High in the wooded mountains of Charo, where the mist tangles among the agaves at dawn, was born what we know today as Mezcal Gotas de Dios. Long before there were labels or certificates, there was already talk of the mezcal that dripped slowly in the clay distilleries, cooked over low heat and with the soul of the earth in every drop.

The person in charge of guarding this legacy was Don Lupe, a mezcal master forged in the silence of the mountain, in the language of the agave and the murmur of the ancestors. But Don Lupe was not satisfied with preserving the tradition. He knew that to protect it, it was necessary to organize.

Don Lupe: President of the Michoacan Association of Mezcal Producers

Don Lupe led a movement that marked a before and after for mezcal producers in Michoacán. As president of the Michoacan Association of Mezcal Producers, he led a cause that many believed impossible: for Michoacán to be officially recognized within the Mezcal Denomination of Origin (DOM).

There were years of meetings, proposals, trips, procedures, and resistance. Some said that Michoacan mezcal had no identity, that it had no history. But Don Lupe, with his unwavering resolve, proved that the story was written in each endemic agave plant, in each conical oven, in each hand grinding with an oak mallet.

The Victory of the Mezcal Producing People

In 2012, thanks to the joint effort of producers, academics, rural communities, and the Association headed by Don Lupe, Michoacán was finally included in the Mezcal Denomination of Origin. It was a triumph that resonated from the ravines to the palenques. A recognition that, beyond paper, validated centuries of tradition.

Don Lupe did not seek personal glory. For him, mezcal was a common good. A living heritage that should be shared with dignity and respect.

Mezcal Gotas De Dios: Heritage and Reverence

Today, Mezcal Gotas de Dios honors that story. Not only as a drink, but as a symbol of struggle, identity, and community. Each drop that comes out of our distilleries in Tzitzio is a tribute to the man who taught us that mezcal is not about fashion or the market: it is about memory, roots, and territory.

Don Lupe, now a living legend of the mountains, continues to guide our path. Not from a desk or an advertisement, but from every glass raised to the sky. From every young person who decides to learn the trade. From each agave that matures slowly, knowing that it is part of something bigger.

Live the experience of the true Michoacan Mezcal, because mezcal—like history—is respected.
And if there is a drop that represents it, it is that of Gotas de Dios.

This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)