If you sell 'Oaxaca in a bottle', what happens to Oaxaca?

Xagaa, Mexico

"NOBODY dare order a margarita with any of these, or I will be really upset." Fausto Zapata, the chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder of El Silencio mezcal, hovered over a table at his company's resort near Oaxaca City, in the agave fields of south-western Mexico. Below him: 7 bottles of limited-edition mezcals, each with tasting notes embossed on thick, black cards. He poured a thimble's worth of US$150-per-bottle tobala into 5 jicaras, tiny bowls that are traditional vessels for sipping mezcal.

"Take a sip, leave it in your mouth for 10 to 12 seconds, let your taste buds get exposed," he said. The second sip was to be consumed in silence - save for the moody guitar piped in through surround-sound speakers - to "get lost in the flavours". "Now move on to your next bite," he said, gesturing at a row of monochrome, glitter-dusted gummies, the confections that might have resulted if Willy Wonka had ventured into triple-digit tasting menus.