Personalized Mezcal Educational Excursions in Oaxaca’s Central Valleys
with Alvin Starkman, M.A., J.D.
Client Commentaries
“Thank you again for a sublime experience. Your tour was the absolute peak of our time in Mexico.”
Ana Bacic, NYC, NY (June, 2016)
“I wanted to again say thank you very much for an amazing day yesterday! It was truly a tour of a lifetime! We learned so much and enjoyed our day very much!”
Jamie Sullivan, Cleveland, OH (August, 2016)
“Thanks again for the tour, it was absolutely the highlight of our trip to Oaxaca!”
Alexandra Smith, NYC, NY (August, 2016)
“We had an excellent day. We and the mezcal made it back to Scotland fine. The tour was one of the highlights of the holiday and we've been telling everyone about it!”
Franki Finch, Glasgow, UK (July, 2016)
“Thank you for yesterday's tour. We both thought it was outstanding and completely exceeded our expectations. We received the relabeled mezcal- it looks great.”
David Pflaum, NYC, NY (July, 2016)
“Thank you for an excellent in depth experience. We greatly enjoyed exploring the countryside and fascinating lives of so many mezcals from plant to cup. Thanks for all the thoughtful details such as sharing special mezcals and the great lunch stop.”
Lily Foster, Mexico City, MX (July, 2016)
“We decided that your tour was the best tour of anything that either of us has ever had in our life.”
Ethan McCreadie, Philadelphia, PA (June, 2016)
“Thanks again for the great tour - Gietha and I had an amazing time and feel far more knowledgeable about good mezcal. In fact, we went out to In Situ last night and felt like snobs because the mezcals we tried were not nearly as good as the ones we tried with you!”
Alex Abbott Boyd (Cocktail Crate Craft Mixers), New York, NY (August, 2016)
(To be clear, I strongly support In Situ mezcalería)
“Thank you, sir, for your patience and time showing us around Oaxaca. The lives that you influence are innumerable!!! Your passion and love for mezcal stays with us. Thank you again!”
Colette Dein, Austin, TX (April, 2016)
“Jamie and I are back in Texas and I just wanted to drop you an email to thank you for the wonderful mezcal tour. It was the highlight of our trip. We managed to make it back with all 6 bottles intact thanks to a great packing job by Jamie. We would like to do another tour the next time we go down.”
J. Scott McLain, McAllen, TX (July, 2016)
“Thanks for taking us on the tour, it was most memorable and pleasurable.”
Max Grenier, Montreal, PQ (June, 2016)
“Thanks again for such an amazing day! It was so much more than I could have imagined.” Lauren Spicola, San Francisco, CA (June, 2016)
“We all had an incredible time and what an honor and privilege to have had your expertise guide us in our journey to gain better understanding of Mezcal!”
Sarah Kabat Marcy, Carmel, CA (May, 2016)
“We had such a good time with you, highlight of the whole trip for sure.”
Creede Fitch, Austin, TX (June, 2016)
“Thanks for the wonderful day. It truly was memorable. We will be fondly thinking of you when we share the mezcal that we purchased with our friends.”
Barney Michalchuk, Los Angeles, CA (May, 2016)
“Thank you for an incredible day, Alvin. We all agreed it was one of the best experiences we've ever had!”
Molly Brownfield, Mexico City, MX (May, 2016)
“You did a terrific job and we appreciate people that are passionate about the things they convey to us! Thank you again. Bottles look great also!!! Have a wonderful weekend ahead!!”
Stephen Collum, Denver, CO (May, 2016)
“Thank you again for a wonderful, educational day! We went to El Paseo for beer and more mezcal, and free snacks! Thank you for the tip, so close to 'home'.”
Dede Voss, Shady Cove, OR (February, 2016)
“Thanks again for an incredible day.”
Aaron Wolff, Detroit, MI (May, 2016)
“Thanks again for everything today. Was tons of fun and very educational.
Adam Blickstein, Washington, D.C. (June, 2016)
“Katy and I would like to thank you once again for the amazing excursion in Oaxaca. We very much enjoyed getting to know the region as well as the whole mezcal process. We have also been thoroughly enjoying the excellent mezcales we brought back.”
Jaime Saavedra, El Cerrito, CA (May, 2016)
“The Mezcal tour yesterday was so informative and very enjoyable. Always a great experience! Thank you once again. See you next year. “
Gordon Lunn, Fergus, ON (April, 2016)
“Alvin - mil gracias por ayer. It was very fun, informative, interesting, and I greatly appreciate the re-bottling for transport. It was a pleasant surprise to find the bag and the nice looking bottles. It was a nice touch. Thanks again and warmest regards. -Charles & Jessica”
Charles Chadwell, Querétaro, MX (April, 2016)
“We wanted to quickly say thanks so much for such an enlightening day! As I mentioned, today was by far the most rewarding day of our trip. I apologize our departure was so abrupt but we wanted to let you know how appreciative we are of everything you taught us and showed us today.”
Parker Thompson, Brooklyn, NY (March, 2016)
“Thanks again for yesterday! Even better than I expected.”
Michael, Czyzewski, Bend, OR (March, 2016)
“Thank you again for an amazing day! Everything we saw was fascinating and we both learned so much.”
Edward Stewart, Wellington, NZ (April, 2016)
Alvin, Thank you so much for everything. The staff had a wonderful time, and really appreciated the knowledge you had to share.
Dennis Gobis, Austin, TX (April, 2016)
“You and the day were wonderful. Bruce thanks you immensely for the chango. He is touched. Cheers and amore
- Julie and gang”
Julie Webb, Dallas, TX (April, 2016)
“Thank you Alvin for an absolutely perfect day! We are grateful. We learned so much and had a blast! And thank you for succeeding in my request of meeting a female producer - it added so much to the already amazing experience.”
Karla Sorrentino, Stamford, CT (March, 2016)
“I can't stop telling people about our experience with you on the tour. I will be ordering more mezcal and books in the coming months.”
Dennis Cuyler, Jalisco, MX (January, 2016)
Thanks so much for the tour yesterday. I'm really glad to have met you!
It was a terrific experience and I'm glad I was able to come along.
I'd love to stay in touch.
Rebecca Klus, NYC, NY (March, 2016)
“Your tour was one of the best travel experiences I've had out of all the places I've been to. We arrived home safe with all Mezcal accounted for. Houston was interesting - I walked through customs with 11 liters of Mezcal and not a second glance. Justin, however, was stopped and had to go through several extra levels of security with the end result of paying $12 to get all of his 11 liters of Mezcal through! Thanks again for a great experience.”
Jonathan Farmer, Nashville, TN (November, 2015)
“We all enjoyed the tour very much and learned a lot about not only mezcal production but the people and places that produce it. It is important to me to honor those people and their culture, not just sell a product to fellow gringos. Thank you again for the in depth tour.”
Shad Kvetko, (mezcalería owner), Dallas, TX (March, 2016)
“Thanks again for a wonderful trip. The bartenders will never forget it!”
Lane Harlan (restaurant & mezcalería owner), Baltimore, MD (February, 2016)
“Your mezcal tour was definitely the highlight. My entire trip to Oaxaca was wonderful, so that's saying a lot.”
Meredith Bethune, Washington, DC (October, 2015)
with Alvin Starkman, M.A., J.D.
Client Commentaries
“Thank you again for a sublime experience. Your tour was the absolute peak of our time in Mexico.”
Ana Bacic, NYC, NY (June, 2016)
“I wanted to again say thank you very much for an amazing day yesterday! It was truly a tour of a lifetime! We learned so much and enjoyed our day very much!”
Jamie Sullivan, Cleveland, OH (August, 2016)
“Thanks again for the tour, it was absolutely the highlight of our trip to Oaxaca!”
Alexandra Smith, NYC, NY (August, 2016)
“We had an excellent day. We and the mezcal made it back to Scotland fine. The tour was one of the highlights of the holiday and we've been telling everyone about it!”
Franki Finch, Glasgow, UK (July, 2016)
“Thank you for yesterday's tour. We both thought it was outstanding and completely exceeded our expectations. We received the relabeled mezcal- it looks great.”
David Pflaum, NYC, NY (July, 2016)
“Thank you for an excellent in depth experience. We greatly enjoyed exploring the countryside and fascinating lives of so many mezcals from plant to cup. Thanks for all the thoughtful details such as sharing special mezcals and the great lunch stop.”
Lily Foster, Mexico City, MX (July, 2016)
“We decided that your tour was the best tour of anything that either of us has ever had in our life.”
Ethan McCreadie, Philadelphia, PA (June, 2016)
“Thanks again for the great tour - Gietha and I had an amazing time and feel far more knowledgeable about good mezcal. In fact, we went out to In Situ last night and felt like snobs because the mezcals we tried were not nearly as good as the ones we tried with you!”
Alex Abbott Boyd (Cocktail Crate Craft Mixers), New York, NY (August, 2016)
(To be clear, I strongly support In Situ mezcalería)
“Thank you, sir, for your patience and time showing us around Oaxaca. The lives that you influence are innumerable!!! Your passion and love for mezcal stays with us. Thank you again!”
Colette Dein, Austin, TX (April, 2016)
“Jamie and I are back in Texas and I just wanted to drop you an email to thank you for the wonderful mezcal tour. It was the highlight of our trip. We managed to make it back with all 6 bottles intact thanks to a great packing job by Jamie. We would like to do another tour the next time we go down.”
J. Scott McLain, McAllen, TX (July, 2016)
“Thanks for taking us on the tour, it was most memorable and pleasurable.”
Max Grenier, Montreal, PQ (June, 2016)
“Thanks again for such an amazing day! It was so much more than I could have imagined.” Lauren Spicola, San Francisco, CA (June, 2016)
“We all had an incredible time and what an honor and privilege to have had your expertise guide us in our journey to gain better understanding of Mezcal!”
Sarah Kabat Marcy, Carmel, CA (May, 2016)
“We had such a good time with you, highlight of the whole trip for sure.”
Creede Fitch, Austin, TX (June, 2016)
“Thanks for the wonderful day. It truly was memorable. We will be fondly thinking of you when we share the mezcal that we purchased with our friends.”
Barney Michalchuk, Los Angeles, CA (May, 2016)
“Thank you for an incredible day, Alvin. We all agreed it was one of the best experiences we've ever had!”
Molly Brownfield, Mexico City, MX (May, 2016)
“You did a terrific job and we appreciate people that are passionate about the things they convey to us! Thank you again. Bottles look great also!!! Have a wonderful weekend ahead!!”
Stephen Collum, Denver, CO (May, 2016)
“Thank you again for a wonderful, educational day! We went to El Paseo for beer and more mezcal, and free snacks! Thank you for the tip, so close to 'home'.”
Dede Voss, Shady Cove, OR (February, 2016)
“Thanks again for an incredible day.”
Aaron Wolff, Detroit, MI (May, 2016)
“Thanks again for everything today. Was tons of fun and very educational.
Adam Blickstein, Washington, D.C. (June, 2016)
“Katy and I would like to thank you once again for the amazing excursion in Oaxaca. We very much enjoyed getting to know the region as well as the whole mezcal process. We have also been thoroughly enjoying the excellent mezcales we brought back.”
Jaime Saavedra, El Cerrito, CA (May, 2016)
“The Mezcal tour yesterday was so informative and very enjoyable. Always a great experience! Thank you once again. See you next year. “
Gordon Lunn, Fergus, ON (April, 2016)
“Alvin - mil gracias por ayer. It was very fun, informative, interesting, and I greatly appreciate the re-bottling for transport. It was a pleasant surprise to find the bag and the nice looking bottles. It was a nice touch. Thanks again and warmest regards. -Charles & Jessica”
Charles Chadwell, Querétaro, MX (April, 2016)
“We wanted to quickly say thanks so much for such an enlightening day! As I mentioned, today was by far the most rewarding day of our trip. I apologize our departure was so abrupt but we wanted to let you know how appreciative we are of everything you taught us and showed us today.”
Parker Thompson, Brooklyn, NY (March, 2016)
“Thanks again for yesterday! Even better than I expected.”
Michael, Czyzewski, Bend, OR (March, 2016)
“Thank you again for an amazing day! Everything we saw was fascinating and we both learned so much.”
Edward Stewart, Wellington, NZ (April, 2016)
Alvin, Thank you so much for everything. The staff had a wonderful time, and really appreciated the knowledge you had to share.
Dennis Gobis, Austin, TX (April, 2016)
“You and the day were wonderful. Bruce thanks you immensely for the chango. He is touched. Cheers and amore
- Julie and gang”
Julie Webb, Dallas, TX (April, 2016)
“Thank you Alvin for an absolutely perfect day! We are grateful. We learned so much and had a blast! And thank you for succeeding in my request of meeting a female producer - it added so much to the already amazing experience.”
Karla Sorrentino, Stamford, CT (March, 2016)
“I can't stop telling people about our experience with you on the tour. I will be ordering more mezcal and books in the coming months.”
Dennis Cuyler, Jalisco, MX (January, 2016)
Thanks so much for the tour yesterday. I'm really glad to have met you!
It was a terrific experience and I'm glad I was able to come along.
I'd love to stay in touch.
Rebecca Klus, NYC, NY (March, 2016)
“Your tour was one of the best travel experiences I've had out of all the places I've been to. We arrived home safe with all Mezcal accounted for. Houston was interesting - I walked through customs with 11 liters of Mezcal and not a second glance. Justin, however, was stopped and had to go through several extra levels of security with the end result of paying $12 to get all of his 11 liters of Mezcal through! Thanks again for a great experience.”
Jonathan Farmer, Nashville, TN (November, 2015)
“We all enjoyed the tour very much and learned a lot about not only mezcal production but the people and places that produce it. It is important to me to honor those people and their culture, not just sell a product to fellow gringos. Thank you again for the in depth tour.”
Shad Kvetko, (mezcalería owner), Dallas, TX (March, 2016)
“Thanks again for a wonderful trip. The bartenders will never forget it!”
Lane Harlan (restaurant & mezcalería owner), Baltimore, MD (February, 2016)
“Your mezcal tour was definitely the highlight. My entire trip to Oaxaca was wonderful, so that's saying a lot.”
Meredith Bethune, Washington, DC (October, 2015)
