Elia Viramontes on Júrame Mezcal, women and community
“When mezcal becomes disconnected from its origin, the community loses,” believes Elia Viramontes, co-founder of Júrame Mezcal. In an exclusive interview, she shares the inspiration behind the brand, its unwavering commitment to women and local communities in Mexico, and protecting future generations of mezcal makers.
As awareness of mezcal has grown, much of the discourse has centred on brands hailing from the renowned Oaxaca region in Mexico, often embracing Espadín agave. But what about lesser-known production areas?
This is the conversation Mezcal Júrame is excited to amplify. The brand has just touched down in the UK and is made in the lesser-known San Luis Potosí city in Mexico using the Salmiana agave varietal.
The name ‘Júrame’ means ‘promise me’ in English, chosen to reflect the commitment of its founders, the Lomelí family, to honour the community in which it was born. Approximately 250 people live and work alongside the distillery in Estación Ipiña in San Luis Potosí.
“Júrame was born from a very simple yet profound question: what story do we want to leave through our work at the mezcal distillery?” says Elia Viramontes, co-founder of Júrame Mezcal.
“In San Luis Potosí, there were once around 200 mezcal producers like ours. Today, only three remain. When production disappeared, people were forced to leave their homes, separate from their families, and abandon the land where they were born. Their lives were left behind.
“We said: ‘This cannot happen here. We made a promise of eternity – juramento a la eternindad – a commitment to do everything we can to ensure that the community continues, that future generations are born there, and that, if people leave, it is not out of necessity, but to seek education elsewhere and return to help the community grow with their new skills.’ That is why it is called Júrame.”
Viramontes says her journey into the mezcal world came from “life, family and love”.
She originally trained as a dentist and spent years working in value-based education for children.
“I entered the world of mezcal when I got married,” she explains. “My husband’s family has been involved in the wine and spirits business since his grandfather, dating back to 1921. My husband, Pepe [Lomelí], and I have been part of the mezcal operation for 30 years, building the business and brand together.”
Working with women and young people
She shares more stories of working alongside her family to build the brand. Each tale showcases that unwavering ‘promise’ Júrame made to Mexicans.
“I personally became more active in the community in 1999, working alongside my mother-in-law and two close friends,” she continues. “Together, we developed a programme to support women and children in Estación Ipiña, a small village surrounding the La Flor distillery, where Mezcal Júrame is produced.
“Today, I lead and contribute to many aspects of the business, including sales and leading marketing and public relations. But what matters most to me is continuing my work with women, children and young people in the community, alongside three other volunteers. This remains at the heart of everything we do.”
Women are integral to Mezcal Jurame’s production process, Viramontes stresses. From replanting agave in the fields to representing the brand, “it is a reality the brand has actively helped to build”, she says.
“When we first arrived at the distillery 30 years ago, the culture was deeply male-dominated, and women had little presence in production. Today, that has changed fundamentally. Women are not only present, but leading across both production and business, from distillation and quality control to sales, communication and community stewardship.
“This change is not cosmetic. It is reshaping the category, influencing both how mezcal is produced and how its stories are told. At Júrame, we believe that a brand with real values should reflect that reality, not as positioning, but as conviction.”
‘It is not a forgiving land’
Viramontes is evidently excited to showcase a part of Mexico – and mezcal – that has not been in the spotlight frequently, until now. She describes San Luis Potosí as “one of the great untold stories of mezcal”.
Located in the Potosino Highlands of central Mexico, the region experiences harsh conditions: long periods of drought, winter frosts, and altitudes of 1,800 metres above sea level. “It is not a forgiving land, and that’s reflected directly in the agave,” Viramontes says.
The Salmiana agave used by Júrame is not cultivated; it is wild, taking between eight and 12 years to reach maturity. The agave is also steamed, not roasted, during production, which Viramontes says gives the mezcal a “clear, clean and delicate composition”.
“In the glass, the result is a mezcal that is more herbal, more mineral, with less smoke and greater complexity on the palate. It is a profile that speaks very clearly of its place of origin,” she adds.
“The local environment also defines the production methods. At the La Flor distillery and its surroundings, everything depends entirely on rainfall. There is no irrigation, no rushed cultivation. Instead, there is patience and respect for the agave’s natural cycle. This is something no technology can replicate.”
Stereotypes do both harm and good
The final liquid is a mezcal with a subtler smoky profile, but Viramontes is eager to emphasise that this is not “a concession to the international palate”. Mezcal has often been dubbed ‘Tequila’s smoky cousin’, but delve deeper into the category, and it soon becomes clear this does a disservice to the depth of flavour styles across the sector.
“We believe this stereotype has done both harm and good,” notes Viramontes. “It has reduced an immensely diverse category to a single sensory attribute, but it has also created curiosity. Many people come to mezcal because of the smoke, and stay as they explore the broader range of styles and flavour profiles.
“Less smoky styles, like ours, are not a concession to the international palate. They are a legitimate expression of territories and agaves that were never particularly smoky to begin with. Salmiana from the Altiplano Potosino has never had a pronounced smoky signature – that is simply its nature.
“I believe the future of the category lies in better understanding that diversity. When consumers see mezcal not as ‘smoky or not’, but as a spectrum shaped by land, agave, master distiller and method, the category gains real depth. Lighter styles will be the entry point for many, and that is positive for the category as a whole.”
As the brand builds on its success in the US by expanding into the UK, Júrame will work hard to showcase the diversity of mezcal. But even overseas, the message of social responsibility will remain at the core of the brand and its conversations.
“When mezcal becomes disconnected from its origin, the community loses. We stand for the opposite: that the value of Júrame in bars and restaurants around the world translates directly back to the people and place behind it,” says Viramonte.
“This commitment is practical. We support women through entrepreneurship programmes, invest in education for children, and promote environmental awareness within the community. On the production side, we have introduced a biodigester to treat and reuse water, reducing environmental impact and supporting long-term sustainability.
“This work was recognised by the San Luis Potosí government through the Comunidad Futuro award, for our contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in reducing poverty and advancing gender equality. It is a moment of real pride for us, and a reminder of the responsibility we carry to continue supporting the community and protecting its future.”
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