“I’ve learned that mezcal is just kind of a good companion,” said Mexico’s two-Michelin-starred chef Enrique Olvera, who recently co-founded Manojo.
His all-Espadín mezcal is a well-rounded libation made in Oaxaca, but more than anything, it’s a bottled expression of friendship, fate, good omens, and, of course, great taste. It captures the spirit of how things are done in Mexico: with friends, good vibes, a touch of mysticism, and a long, lingering sobremesa.
Mexican Chef Enrique Olvera is Inspired by Oaxaca
Enrique Olvera, courtesy of Casa Mata.
Chef Olvera, renowned for what is arguably Mexico’s most iconic restaurant—Pujol, along with Ticuchi and Criollo in Oaxaca, and Cosme in New York—is no stranger to sharing the particularities of Mexican flavors with the world. And when it came to spirits, he went straight into the tastiest part of Mexico: Oaxaca.
“Having Criollo in Oaxaca has allowed me to understand not just the food, but the social and cultural dynamics of the region,” says Olvera. “Oaxaca is incredibly rich, diverse, and complex. You have to approach it with openness—not with the assumptions of a chilango or a foreigner, but with humility and respect.” That mindset shaped how he would eventually engage with mezcal not just as a spirit, but as a way of understanding the land, its people, and their traditions.
“Oaxaca is incredibly rich, diverse, and complex,”
—Chef Olvera
The idea for the brand emerged just before the pandemic. Though Olvera had been approached to create a mezcal in the past, he always declined—until the timing and the people felt right. Manojo was born as a result of collaboration among friends and colleagues, precisely Co-founders Alexander Ferzan, Nes Rueda, Thomas McDonald, and Gonzalo Gout. A trip to Oaxaca with new friends became the seed of the project, and lockdown gave him time to nurture it. And deepened his exploration of Mexico’s liquid gastronomy.“We wanted to create a mezcal that spoke to everyone,” he says, especially one that could represent the everyday agave, rather than the wild silvestres. The result is what he calls a “textbook Espadín”—balanced, approachable, and made to be sipped straight.
The name Manojo, Spanish for “a handful,” carries layered meaning. “We liked the idea of the eye and the hand,” says Olvera, referencing the traditional way mezcal is made: guided by feeling, not formulas. It’s cooked, observed, and judged by sight and touch—a ojo y a mano. Manojo also evokes a group of people coming together, hands full, with purpose. A project done a manos llenas.
Introducing Manojo Mezcal
Photo by Alexander Ferzan.
Photo by Alexander Ferzan.
That respect ultimately led him to San Luis del Rio, a village located three hours from the city of Oaxaca. There, rolling hills of Espadín agave stretch across the landscape, and a seasonal river winds past the palenque where Manojo is distilled. The village is entirely dedicated to Espadín, and its rhythm is inseparable from the agave cycle
At the foothills of this quiet yet powerful place are Joel Velasco and Felicitas Hernández, a married couple who lead the production. In what is typically a male-dominated industry, their partnership brought a sense of balance and calm to the project. “They’ve spent their lives making mezcal together,” says Olvera. “And that relationship softened the process. It brought harmony—and that comes through in the final product.”
So from the very beginning, Manojo has been not just about quality but also about values. Paz, amor, fe y celebración—peace, love, faith, and celebration—are the pillars of the brand. Mezcal, after all, has a mystical, spiritual quality. As Olvera says, people in Oaxaca often note that it doesn’t create a typical buzz—it feels magical. Perhaps there’s a reason we call it a “spirit.”
Chef Olvera Shares How to Best Enjoy Mezcal
Photo by Alexander Ferzan.
Photo by Alexander Ferzan.
The result is a mezcal that’s neither intimidating nor oversimplified. “If you know mezcal,” Olvera says, “you’ll taste this and think, this is a correct, well-made liquid. And if you know nothing about mezcal, it won’t scare you either.” Bright and fresh on the nose, it opens with pear and green herbal notes. On the palate, its minerality takes the lead.
Versatility was also key. Most mezcal in the U.S. is consumed in cocktails. Olvera wanted something that would shine in a margarita or paloma, but could also be sipped neat. Manojo is indeed quite affordable, not overly precious (and still a coveted bottle on the bar,) and crafted with care and traceability, with ecological and community consciousness at its core. Olvera drinks it straight, sometimes with a side of sparkling water—rezando y pecando, as he jokes. “Mezcal is more than something to start a night—it’s something that can accompany you the whole afternoon. If I’m drinking mezcal, that’s what I’m drinking all day.”
“If I’m drinking mezcal, that’s what I’m drinking all day,”
—Chef Olvera
And while the mezcal market continues to grow, and it seems like everyone is launching their own brand, Olvera is betting on the long game. “This isn’t a short-term launch,” he says. “We want Manojo to endure. We’ve built a strong team, each of us bringing something to the table. And above all, the liquid is there. The juice is good. I’m proud of it.”
Photo by Alexander Ferzan.
Who is Chef Enrique Olvera?
Enrique Olvera ’97/’99 is an internationally renowned chef and owner of Grupo Enrique Olvera. His restaurants in Mexico include the award winning Pujol, Molino El Pujol, and five Eno gourmet coffee shops in Mexico City; Manta at The Cape Hotel in Cabo San Lucas; Criollo in Oaxaca City; Moxi at Hotel Matilda in San Miguel de Allende; and, in New York City, Cosme and Alta. Cosme is named after a market in Mexico City where Olvera’s grandfather took him as a young boy.
Olvera was featured in the second season of Chef’s Table, the critically acclaimed show created by filmmaker David Gelb. A frequent conference guest and lecturer, Olvera has appeared at the MAD symposium in Copenhagen and Denmark, and Gastronomika in San Sebastian, Spain and has contributed to several Latin Flavors, American Kitchen conferences at the Culinary Institute of America, San Antonio. On April 20, 2016, at the 18th annual Worlds of Flavor® conference, Olvera was the keynote speaker, presenting The Voice of the Chef: Developing a Personal Philosophy Through Heritage and Training. – Source
