Tequila
Tequila is one of the fastest-growing spirits in the U.S., with America consuming even more than they do in its homeland of Mexico. The biggest growth is in the premium and super-premium categories, as drinkers discover the pleasure of sipping rather than slamming good tequila. Tequila is in fact a type of mezcal, but one that has a specific “domain of origin” status and which must be made from a single species of agave, the blue agave. Tequila must be made in certain designated areas in Mexico, the biggest being the state of Jalisco, where the town of Tequila is located. Rack “tequila” must contain at least 51% blue agave sugars, and the remainder can be just about anything, including corn syrup. However, quality tequila will state on the bottle that it is made from 100% blue agave. Anything less than this (think Cuervo Gold) is called a mixto. Within Mexico, tequila can be bottled at anything from 62 to 110 proof, but within the U.S. it must be at least 80 proof. Blanco (silver or white) tequila is sold unaged, reposado tequila must be aged at least two months in white oak barrels, and añejo (aged) tequila are aged for twelve months minimum. Finally, extra añejo must be aged for at least three years. A new variety of tequila, generally called cristalino, is aged tequila that has been filtered to remove color, giving it the appearance of a blanco but the flavor of an añejo.
Top Tequila Posts:
Understanding the Different Styles of Tequila
A Visit to Casa Herradura
A Visit to the Don Julio Tequila Distillery
Tequila brand Cazcanes was founded in 2015 with its first product hitting shelves in 2017. It may be fairly new to the wide world of agave spirits, but the brand story goes way back. The name honors the last native Mexicans conquered by the Spaniards, and the tequila itself is reportedly based on a 300-year-old…
The hottest thing in tequila today isn’t cristalino or extra anejo expressions: It’s a flavoring agent in the form of marigold flower extract. Espolon was the first tequila to hit the market with a marigold expression, and more appear to be on the way. (Marigolds are an essential component of Mexican Day of the Dead…
It has been nine long years since we last looked in on Jose Cuervo’s top end Reserva de la Familia expression, the very first extra anejo tequila introduced way back in 1995. Since a line extension in 2020 that added a Platino, Reposado, and, most recently, a Cristalino offering, the label has been tweaked a…
Socorro bills itself as “Texas Tequila” owing to its origins in the state, but rest assured, Socorro is made in Jalisco, Mexico, where it is focused on producing a premium product at reasonable prices — while highlighting its philanthropic work. That philanthropic work is built around providing water to needy communities. Specifically: “The brand’s logo…
Don’t call it tequila: This new spirit is made from agave, but it comes from South Africa — specifically wild African Agave Americana grown in the Karoo desert and Agave Salmiana from South Africa’s Eastern Cape province. So that’s the basics. Here’s what else the distillery has to say: Sango is an African take on…
Pasote hit the scene in 2016, and we were huge fans of one of its inaugural expressions in particular, the reposado, which even made our holiday guide that year. Nine years later Pasote is back with a line extension — its blanco delivered at still strength, a whopping 55% abv. Pasote Tequila Blanco Still Strength…
El Tesoro’s amazing Mundial Collection releases have both earned our praise, and now the distillery returns with round three, which is aged in Basil Hayden Toast whiskey barrels. The highlands tequila is a reposado, fully aged for its nearly six months of resting time in Basil Hayden Toast oak barrels that are toasted then flash-charred…
Humano Tequila lays claim to being one of the few tequila producers “with direct control over their production from field to glass,” producing its spirits from single-estate agave cultivated across 1250 acres of the Jalisco highlands. Here’s a lot more detail, should you desire it: “Our name honors the human touch at each step of…
Even if you’re not a mezcal drinker, you’ve probably seen Bozal’s iconic ceramic bottles, painted in understated earth tones, on the back bar more than once. Bozal, which means “wild” or “untamed,” produces a huge range of mezcals, ranging from a simple Ensamble to various single maguey and reserve bottlings. Today we look at two…
Milagro isn’t the most exciting tequila brand — though its Select Barrel Reserve options are good products at a solid value — but the distillery looks to shake that up with the launch of a new expression that joins the standard lineup: Cristalino Anejo. It’s Milagro’s first launch in more than a decade. Like all…