The New York bartender Phil Ward helped usher in the tequila and mezcal renaissance when he opened Mayahuel in 2009. That East Village bar was one of the first in the United States to focus on agave spirits and cocktails made with them. By the time it closed eight years later, there were mezcalerias across the country, and drinkers everywhere were calling for mezcal margaritas and mezcal Negronis.