In this episode, we speak with Cynthia Villalobos from Aventureros del Mezcal and Jesús Espina Ortiz from Archivo Maguey about their efforts to shine a spotlight on mezcal and the folks that make it.Cynthia provides financial, educational and technical support in order to elevate independent mezcalero brands. And Jesús offers unique mezcal tastings using his knowledge and passion for design.Learn more about this episode of The Nectar Corridor at www.whetstoneradio.com, on IG and Twitter at @whetstoneradio, and YouTube at /WhetstoneRadio. Read the full transcript here: https://www.whetstonemagazine.com/nc-eng10-transcript Topics covered in the episode: Min 1:05: Meet Cynthia Villalobos MIn 2:17: Mezcal production costing Min 3:35: The “tequio” (community work) Min 4:19: Challenges for mezcal producers Min 6:25: Aventureros del Mezcal Association (Mezcal Adventurers Association) Min 8:12: Reforestation and conservation of magueys Min 9:19: What is called fair payment/price Min 9:58: The maguey cost table from CRM (Mezcal Regulatory Council) Min 10:48: Vinasse (waste) treatment and impact mitigation Min 12:38: Quemical parameters for selling mezcal Min 18:39: Meet Jesus Espina Ortiz Min 21:41: Application of design principles to mezcal Min 24:46: Festivals and brands in the early 2000s Min 28:05: Methodology to analyze mezcal sensorially Min 29:32: Teachers who inspired the methodology Min 31:00 Key moments in the discovery of the methodology