When people talk about sustainability in mezcal, they usually focus on preserving agave. And that’s certainly an important issue, but it’s hardly the only issue. Another major problem is vinaza — the liquid left in the still after distillation. It’s highly acidic, so when it is disposed of in local waterways — which it often is — it can kill fish and aquatic plants, and turn a local water source into a hazard.

We’re raising funds to run a US$5,000 pilot program that will use natural fermentation methods to make that waste safe to put back into local aquifers. When you contribute $50 toward that pilot, we’ll send you this silkscreen print of Jose Guadalupe Posada’s image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in an agave. It measures almost three feet in width.