Gregorio Martinez Jarquín grew up working on palenques with his family members around his hometown of Santiago Matatlán at the age of 13. He befriended some of the Cortés brothers at an early age. He eventually joined the family with his marriage to Epi Cortés and began working on the “De Cortés” palenque, as it was known then. These days, Gregorio has been showing his two sons, Oscar and Eduardo, the family craft of mezcal production as they step into their roles as the next generation of Matatalán mezcaleros. This evolution can be seen in Sons of Mezcal as Gregroio brings Oscar with him to harvest a load of Espadin magueys, giving the youngman a glimpse into the early mornings and laborious hours involved with working the fields. Gregorio is known to be a man of few words, but his true voice comes through in his mezcales and they speak loudly and with great expression.
