There is no more misunderstood spirit than tequila.
Of course, all spirits have their blind spots – Cognac’s failure to shake its stuffy image, Scotch whisky’s perpetual underuse as a cocktail ingredient, rum not quite making good on its ‘next big thing’ promise. But where these spirits still hold their own respect and reverence among drinkers, tequila still feels like the one spirit that, despite gaining considerable popularity in recent years, is yet to overcome its demons.
When I first embarked on writing my book ‘Tequila: Tasting Course’ – part of a series of spirits books published by DK Living – the main question I was met with, without fail, was: “Is there even enough to write about tequila to fill a book?”
Sure, it might only have been given its official denomination of origin (DO) in 1974, but the origins of tequila can be traced as far back as the Aztecs. Mass production started in the 1600s, and it has played a role in the Spanish invasion, Prohibition, and is now one of the fastest-growing spirit categories in the world.
As I write in the book:
“Many of us remember our first taste of tequila. For a long time, outside its birthplace in Mexico, it has, unfairly, had an identity crisis. Relegated to the party shot and blamed for many a hangover, its colorful history, cultural importance, and craftsmanship of its production were ignored for far too long.
“Its raw ingredient, the agave, spends more time in the ground than the raw ingredient of practically any other spirit. Tequila is identified geographically, much like Cognac and Champagne, and its history spans hundreds of years, yet it has been one of the most misunderstood spirits in the global gamut.
“Now, however, the agave spirit is having somewhat of a renaissance.”
The Finer Details
For anyone still in the dark about how tequila is made, allow me to enlighten you. It must be made from one specific variety of agave, namely the blue weber agave. A genus of the Asparagaceae family, it is technically a succulent (not a cactus, as it is often mistaken for) and has been used as the only agave to produce tequila for nearly 100 years. It takes anywhere between five and seven years for the agave to reach maturity before it is tested for the desired sugar content and harvested by jimadors (farmers) to make tequila. Its heart, the pina, is what we’re after, and it is stripped of its spiky leaves, pencas, before being cooked, crushed, fermented, and distilled twice to become tequila.
Tequila can be made in five different styles: blanco (aged for no more than two months), joven (a blend of aged tequilas), reposado (aged for 60-365 days), anejo (aged for one to three years) and extra anejo (aged at least three years). If you’ve heard of cristalinos, these are anejos which have been either charcoal filtered or redistilled to remove the color. It’s a controversial style, said to have been stripped of flavor, but one that is proving popular, nonetheless. When it comes to ageing, oak is the dominant wood, and while ex-bourbon barrels are the most common, ex-wine barrels are popular too: keep an eye out for rosa tequilas, which are pink and have spent time in red wine barrels.
Where tequila is made also matters. While agave spirits can be made anywhere in the world, tequila must be made in Mexico and legally in more than 180 municipalities, covering 11 million hectares, across five states of Mexico: Jalisco (by far the most prolific in terms of tequila production and home to the town of Tequila), Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Tamaulipas.
The word terroir, when used in relation to non-fruit-based spirits, is still disputed, but I’d argue is relevant when talking about tequila. The agave can spend up to 12 years in the ground, and with the ability to be grown across so many different landscapes, it takes on specific characteristics that translate into the glass. Agaves grown in lowland areas are more vegetal and earthy, while those in the highlands are floral and fruity. Some tequila brands are so specific as to use a single-ranch approach so that the agaves used in the production can be pinpointed and the tequila can showcase the flavor of a specific piece of land.
When I began to pull together the 100 tequilas that sit at the back of the book, I wanted to make sure that while also spanning the numerous styles of tequila on the market, they also showcase just how different every single tequila is, despite being made from one single varietal of agave. In the tasting notes, you’ll see how I’ve pinpointed specifics in production to explain why each tequila tastes the way it does: as well as where the agave grows and how long for, production nuances as seemingly small as how the cooked pina is crushed, what yeast is used in fermentation, and how numerous tequilas are blended before bottling can all have a huge impact on aroma and flavor.
Tequila Cheat Codes
While I don’t have the time or space to capture everything that makes tequila so special in a single newsletter, what I can do is sign off with some helpful tips to help you navigate the shelves this Christmas and beyond. If a bottle says a tequila is made from 100% agave, this means that everything in the bottle is made from blue weber agave. This might seem like a given, but legally, tequila only needs to be 51% blue weber agave, and the rest can be another sugar source. Of course, 100% sounds much better and knowing exactly what is in your bottle is generally considered a bonus, but 100% doesn’t always mean superior quality.
The best way to decipher that is to know who has made it. Unlike a lot of other spirits, when it comes to tequila, one distillery can make a whole host of brands. And while it might not be immediately obvious where a brand is made, every single bottle of tequila has a number marked as a NOM (Norma Oficial Mexicana). A quick Google of this NOM will tell you the distillery that made the liquid in the bottle (and a further delve might even tell you who).
Additives are a point of contention now, too, and you’ll see some bottles or brands proudly claim to be additive-free. It isn’t illegal to use additives in tequila, but knowing the likes of glycerin or oak extract aren’t in your premium bottle of tequila can be a useful piece of knowledge.
And how we drink tequila is a sure-fire way to change how we, especially outside of Mexico, view this nuanced spirit. There are, of course, the classic cocktails – Margaritas, Palomas, Toreadors – but tequila is incredibly versatile depending on its style. It pairs well with food – think chocolate, cheese, seafood, umami flavors, and fatty cuts of meat – and can be drunk as a sipping spirit out of a beautiful piece of glassware (I go into detail about different glasses and how they impact flavor).
They are also best shared among friends and can be made into traditional punches like a cazuela voladora or as a chaser with verditas or sangritas as a fun but flavorful aperitif. And don’t just save the aged tequilas for post-dinner sipping either. A beautifully made blanco is often the purest and most characterful expression of that blue weber agave. Give it the time and consideration something that has spent nearly a decade in the Mexican earth deserves.
Tequila: A Tasting Course is available now
Three of My Favorite Tequilas
Don Fulano Blanco Fuerte
Founded by the famous Fonseca family, this 140-year-old brand is known for its high-quality blancos and this one is no different. Made using a combination of pot and column stills, as well as the combined expertise of master distiller Enrique Fonseca and blender Sergio Mendoza, it sits at a higher ABV than most at 50% (100 proof) and uses highland agaves that have been grown for around eight years. There is some funkiness on the nose and a well-balanced combination of fruit and floral aromas that transform into strawberry, cherry pits, some salinity and petrichor. On the palate, think green with Perello olives and the texture more reminiscent of olive oil. A great sipping blanco that would also work wonders in a Martini.
Tequila Ocho Reposado 2018 Las Presas
A tequila brand with a cult following, Ocho is the brainchild of Tomas Estes and Carlos Camarena, two of tequila’s most admired visionaries. With a focus on single ranch tequilas and vintages, every bottle of Ocho can be traced back to where and when the agaves were harvested. This bottling is from a 2018 harvest of agaves from the Las Presas ranch, which once belonged to Camarena’s great-grandfather. A reposado, it has been aged in ex-bourbon barrels for just two months and has a delicious dessert quality about it with sugar-dusted donuts, allspice and toasted almonds which are lifted by more bright and earthy characteristics on the palate. A brilliant showcase of deft balancing agave and wood character.
Artenom Seleccion de 1146
This brand is brilliant at celebrating those all-important NOMs I mentioned earlier, and this particular anejo is a bottling from NOM 1146, aka, Tequileno Distillery, one of Jalisco’s most famous, and using mid-slope agaves. It was first matured in Cabernet Franc wine barrels before being moved into ex-Canadian and Tennessee rye whiskey casks. It’s moody and dark with notes of cherry, almond, dark chocolate, Black Forest gateau, spices like cloves and cinnamon, and a tannic, smoky finish. Big, bold and complex, this is an anejo you won’t forget in a hurry.
