Del Maguey Vida is probably the most common mezcal. If you go to a bar and ask for mezcal it’ll likely be that, and it’s actually pretty decent for the price point, especially for cocktails.

If I’m going for something smokier and for sipping rather than mixing, I am a big fan of Delirio Anejo. It’s pricier, but still pretty easy to find at larger liquor stores, and has a great flavor profile, using two different agave plants (Espadin, which is pretty common in Mezcal, and Madre-Cuishe, with a more mineral flavor that compliments the smokiness).

If you want to get more serious about it, and as I mentioned in another comment, you can check out Vago Mezcal by Aquilino Garcia Lopez. He produces a whole collection of similarly prepared mezcals using different varieties or agave, so you can really compare flavor profiles. Pricier and harder to find, but great for learning about the differences.

If you haven’t had any tequilas or mezcals, probably the bare minimum info you need is that there’s three main preparation styles - silver, reposado, and anejo, each being aged more than the previous. Usually this results in different colors - clear for silver, light yellow for reposado, and a whiskey-like darker brown for anejo.

Generally aging will make the tequila more smooth and flavorful, so you’ll want to focus on reposados and anejos if you aren’t mixing drinks with it. For mixed drinks usually you want the flavor of the mixers more than the liquor, so that’s when you’d go for the silver.

Some of my favorite drinks with mezcal are a Paloma, replacing the tequila with mezcal, and with some hellfire bitters tossed in. It’s sort of like a spicy margarita, but the grapefruit has a bit more sweetness which balances out the smoke and spice.

Also, I love a last word, replacing the gin with mezcal. It’s a good bit more bitter, between the chartreuse and the marsaschino, but I’m a fan of bitter drinks.