Just damn good mezcal.
No celebrities,
Just damn good mezcal.
Assets
The Story
A beautifully balanced mezcal with a notorious history that includes smuggling and weeklong parties in a clandestine bar and music hub in Antigua, Guatemala.
Ilegal Activity
Who We Are
OUR HISTORY
Around 2004, Ilegal’s founder John Rexer began bringing mezcal down from Oaxaca to Antigua to supply his bar, Café No Sé. The mezcal became popular very quickly. At the time, he was bringing down unbranded mezcal from a variety of villages in Oaxaca that included: Tlacolula, San Lorenzo, Sola De Vega, Santa Catarina Minas, Hierve el Agua, Santiago Matatlan and a few others.
In 2006, John created the brand Ilegal, originally just to supply his bar in Guatemala. On the back of each bottle of Ilegal you will find it says “Originally produced for: Café No Sé, Mezcal Bar.”
OUR LIQUID
Certified as Artisanal by the CRM, made in Oaxaca, agave forward, with a hint of smoke. Approachable and versatile. Rough-luxe. Can be served neat or in cocktails. We only use espadin agave becasue it is cultivated and sustainable.
• Simple Portfolio: Joven, Reposado & Añejo
• One of the few brands that has aged mezcals
• We pride ourselves on our aged mezcals as well as our Joven
THE GIST OF IT
Ilegal is the leading artisanal mezcal in the U.S. It is from Oaxaca, Mexico and made with sustainable espadin agave. It is smooth and approachable, and perfect for drinking neat or in cocktails. It’s an ultra-premium spirit. The flavor profile is a mouthful of sweet agave with a hint of smoke. It comes in Joven, Reposado, and Añejo. It’s called Ilegal because the owner used to smuggle it out of Mexico to Guatemala when he first started the brand. There are some pretty crazy stories.
“The flavor profile is a mouthful of sweet agave with a hint of smoke.”
According to John Rexer, founder and CEO of the popular Oaxacan producer, aged mezcal is not as much of a novelty as contemporary shelves suggest. He points to the historical precedence of wood barrels, glass demijohns and clay canteros that were used in local liquor production as far back as the early 1700s.
With the 7 Year Añejo, his hope is to resurrect a forgotten technique, while expanding the modern conception of what the category can be.
Ilegal Mezcal has revealed its bottles will be made with 100% recycled glass.
The switch to recyclable glass has grown from a global glass shortage – the result of issues within the spirits supply chain. The new recyclable bottles are available in 375ml and 750ml iterations, and enter the market this month.
Ilegal Life
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Winner of 2017 Shorty Award Gold Distinction for Brand Identity
We launched the Donald Eres Un Pendejo campaign in July of 2015 to give a voice to and unify the community that is in opposition to Donald Trump’s racist, sexist, dangerous statements.
Ilegal Music Series
In 2013, when we launched the Ilegal music series in New York, we wanted to create the same community & environment that Café No Sé, the birthplace of Ilegal, had provided to so many musicians. The series has since expanded to several iconic locations across the USA including the surf lodge (Montauk) and Harvard & Stone (LA). as a result Ilegal mezcal and it’s team have become fixtures in the live music scene and been a part of launching several bands careers.
Love Your Neighbor
In 2018 we launched Ilegal’s Love Your Neighbor platform. We believe that at the door of your business your values should be exemplified and defended. We are too keenly aware of the issues of climate change, immigration, the refugee crisis, gender discrimination, racism and xenophobia. These issues impact us, our friends, and our relatives.
Since the company began we have supported and contributed to a number of groups working to affect social change for the better and in 2019 we have raised over $60,000 for several groups with your help.