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Congratulations to Anneliese for winning the state final for Patron Perfectionist! She will now be heading to Melbourne in October to compete at the National Finals.
Her cocktail Over & Above is inspired by the people, bars & brands in our industry that go over & above to share agave with the world.
Her cocktail is available now at Hot Tamale.
Chinacos were wealthy landowners during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries who, out of necessity, became legendary fighters. The Chinaco warriors tirelessly defended Mexico during both the War of Reform and the French Intervention in the mid-1800s. They were cheered on by the people of Mexico, feared by those they faced and renowned for their bravery and heroism. Their leader was General Manuel González. The history of Tequilera La Gonzaleña, the home of Chinaco Tequila, begins in 1856 when General González acquired land in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.
Almost a century later, in 1966, a hurricane devastated the plantations of Tamaulipas – which, at that time, were devoted to growing grains, vegetables and livestock – leading residents to plant an alternative and more lucrative crop. Tequilana Weber Tipo Azul was an ideal option as it was in growing demand and flourished in the climate and soil conditions of the region. Guillermo González, the great-grandson of General Manuel González and successive leader of the González family, was Mexico’s secretary of agriculture at the time. He agreed to sell the region’s blue agave plants to a major tequila producer in Jalisco, then the only Mexican state that could legally produce tequila.
When the agave plants matured eight years later, the tequila producer refused to pay Guillermo González the agreed-upon price. Left with no buyers for the agave, and refusing to sell them for less than promised, González became a warrior in his own right. He battled against the larger distillers and successfully lobbied the Mexican government for an amendment that would allow for tequila production outside of Jalisco.
After four years of petitioning, Tamaulipas received Denomination of Origin status and this gave rise to Tequilera La Gonzaleña in 1977, the first tequila distillery in Tamaulipas, and home of Chinaco Tequila. Named for the band of warriors who fought tirelessly a century prior, Chinaco Tequila has come to symbolize, particularly for the small producer and jimadores, the battles waged against those larger factions of tequila producers.
The great great-grandsons of General Manuel González proudly carry on the family’s renowned tequila-making traditions. Under their direction, Chinaco Tequila continues to win over new admirers and has earned a hard-fought place among tequila’s elite.
Information from Chinaco’s website – CLICK HERE to read more.
Chinaco Blanco is distinguished by its fresh 100% agave taste. Blanco is bottled within five days after distillation for a remarkably fresh, clean taste that’s perfect for sipping, making premium margaritas or adding to mixed drinks.
Pristine clear, Chinaco Blanco has a lovely bouquet of pear, quince, dill and lime, tinged with aloe. It’s very clean, smooth, fresh and bright on the palate, with exceptional depth and balance, followed by a smooth, long, lingering finish.
CLICK HERE to see our previous Tequila of the Month
Fortaleza tequila started in 2005, on the back of 125 years of tradition. Fortaleza tequila is created by Guillermo Sauza who has been passionate about tequila his entire life. Guillermo’s Great-Great- Grandfather starting a distillery in the town of Tequila in 1873 called La Perseverancia. Creating a family tequila for three generations before selling in 1973.
Guillermo was always passionate about tequila, which inspired him to reopen one of his families distilleries La Fortaleza, a beautiful small distillery overlooking the town of Tequila.
NOM: 1493
Agave Source: Tequila Valley
Cooking Method: Stone/brick oven
Crushing Method: 100% stone crushed
Distillation: Double Distilled
Pot Style: Copper pots
Proof: 80 (40% abv)
Fermentation: Open-air wood tanks
Sugars: 100% agave
Water Source: Natural Spring (Tequila Valley)
Bottles: Hand-blown in Mexico
“This is probably the best blanco on the planet. Love it. Huge bursts of olive and butter. Yum.”
Aromas of citrus, and rich cooked agave fill your nose in this unique and very special blanco tequila. Also present: butter, olive, earth, black pepper, and a deep inviting vegetal complexity.
Flavors include citrus, cooked agave, vanilla, basil, olive, and lime. The finish is long and deep, complex yet easy to drink.
Fortaleza Blanco is a true aficionado’s tequila.
NOM: 1493
Agave Source: Tequila Valley
Cooking Method: Stone/brick oven
Crushing Method: 100% stone crushed
Distillation: Double Distilled
Pot Style: Copper pots
Proof: 92 (46% abv)
Fermentation: Open-air wood tanks
Sugars: 100% agave
Water Source: Natural Spring (Tequila Valley)
Bottles: Hand-blown in Mexico
“Almost like you’re getting Fortaleza Blanco direct from the still… actually, you are. This is a great blanco in its purest form.”
Aromas of fruit, baked fully-ripened agave, green olive, and earth are invitingly present. Slightly brighter and a touch more rustic than the regular blanco, the accents of butter, olive, earth, black pepper, and vegetal qualities in the flavor are enhanced because it comes straight from our small copper pot still, without adding water prior to bottling.
For years, the only way to sample this was to visit our distillery in Tequila, Jalisco. Until now.
NOM: 1493
Agave Source: Tequila Valley
Cooking Method: Stone/brick oven
Crushing Method: 100% stone crushed
Distillation: Double Distilled
Pot Style: Copper pots
Proof: 80 (40% abv)
Fermentation: Open-air wood tanks
Sugars: 100% agave
Water Source: Natural Spring (Tequila Valley)
Bottles: Hand-blown in Mexico
Aging: Each lot individually aged in American Oak. Aging statement on bottle.
“Without question, one of the best tequilas ever made. When we run out of this at home we immediately replace it.”
Aromas of citrus, caramel, butter, cooked agave, and sage are the beginning of a pleasingly balanced and very unique tasting experience. Fortaleza Reposado has it’s own distinct character, and is not like any other tequila.
Flavors include cooked agave, citrus, vanilla, apple, earth, and cinnamon. The finish is long and rich, delicately spicy, and it has an oily texture that make this a joy to drink.
You simply cannot go wrong with Fortaleza Reposado. It’s popular with beginners and experienced tequila drinkers alike.
PRODUCTION DETAILS
NOM: 1493
Agave Source: Tequila Valley
Cooking Method: Stone/brick oven
Crushing Method: 100% stone crushed
Distillation: Double Distilled
Pot Style: Copper pots
Proof: 80 (40% abv)
Fermentation: Open-air wood tanks
Sugars: 100% agave
Water Source: Natural Spring (Tequila Valley)
Bottles: Hand-blown in Mexico
Aging: 18 months in American Oak
“Rich and complex. As good as tequila gets.”
“Citrus deliciousness! Baked agave, vanilla, slightly spicy. This is a delightful long-term sipper. This is a unique tequila experience.”
Caramel, vanilla, butterscotch and cooked agave aromas practically jump from the glass in this highly-praised and perfectly-aged añejo. This tequila is so rich and complex that some people are even able to detect pineapple, peach, orange blossom, nutmeg, and raisin in the nose.
Once in your mouth, the full cooked agave experience continues with a thick and oily texture that coats your mouth in a very soothing way. Butterscotch, caramel, toffee, citrus, and hazelnuts are common flavors that people identify.
Fortaleza Añejo is a prized treat for any tequila lover.
READ MORE about our previous featured agave spirits!
Welcome to Hot Tamale’s Tequila of the Month! Each month we choose one of our 300 different agave spirits to showcase as well as give you some extra information and a great deal to be able to try it.
MODERN ORGANIC TEQUILA created with a low carbon footprint with certified ingredients & recycled labels. The tequila is made in Jalisco in Mexico by Greenbar Distillery who pride themselves in creating this tequila with traditional methods with the addition of Californian Wine Making techniques.
Unaged tequila, with a velvet finish. There is heavy agave notes with a herbal, clay & buttery finish.
Aged for 1 year in newly toasted ex Rye Whiskey barrels gives this tequila a great herbal spice as well as a smooth finish.
This tequila is aged for 2 years which gives it a caramel apple taste with an end of slightly spiced oak. Definitely a tasty drop!
We have all three of these tasty tequilas on a flight for $30 – JANUARY19 only! Do not miss out!
EACH WEEK AT HOT TAMALE WE SPOTLIGHT A DIFFERENT TEQUILA FOR EVERYONE TO ENJOY, THIS WEEK WE HAVE CHOSEN TO SHOWCASE DON FULANO.
We have their Blanco Fuerte & Imperial at a special price for you all to try. The Fuerte is a still strength 50% unaged tequila & the Imperial is a 5 year old in ex Cognac & Sherry barrels. Read more about their spirits & process below.
NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN WORK IN THE FIELDS. Given this, the techniques of cooking, fermentation, distillation and aging – not belittle – are secondary. Great mezcal is the result of the profound relationship between man and earth, and it is difficult to overestimate the importance of this for the production and preservation of authentic tequila, its tradition and its historic taste. Increasing industrialization has adopted a production model that favors monocultives, thereby threatening not only the biodiversity of the agave, but the complex ecosystem of which they are part. Today, brands are born in laboratories and marketing firms, eager to get a percentages of the growing market but with little connection to the land and its responsible work. DON FULANO is 100% fruit of this work, the daily care and preservation of the land which for five generations has sustained the family business. Only through this work can the benefits and complexity of a authentic tequila be obtained from a natural process. In Tequileña we are proud of this work and have no doubt that here lies the soul of our business and our tradition.
There are more than 60 variables in the production of tequila. Each one creates variations in the profile and character of each product. However, there are 2 fundamental things that cannot be altered if the intention is to produce authentic tequila. One of them is the optimum maturity of the plant. To decide when each plant is ready for harvest is crucial to the complexity that will result of it. Agaves that are used to produce Don Fulano are selected one by one to ensure this maturity. Harvested from the best soil in the region and over 2,000 meters above sea level -where hot days and cold nights shelter the fields – these agaves achieve high concentrations of sugar, providing great complexity to our spirits and, of utmost importance, allow them to remain 100% free of additives.
Agave tequilana has an extraordinary concentration of fructans. To achieve an authentic tequila, it is essential to conduct a thermal hydrolysis of the agave heart or piñas to transform its rich variety of carbohydrates into sugars which will be then gathered in a rich and complex mash during extraction. These sugars are largely responsible for the richness and abundance of aromas in great tequilas. The industrialized production however, has replaced this traditional process with a modern method of enzymatic hydrolysis (diffusers), sacrificing quality for COST efficiency and thus, extracting the soul of tequila. Don Fulano retains the traditional method of prolonged cooking to achieve complex profiles out of a natural and organic process. The use of autoclaves at low pressure allows us to bring out the herbal spectrum of the raw agave, incorporating mint, anise and rosemary, among many others interesting notes, to our fruitful highland style.
Aguamiel or Honeywater is the name of the juice that is obtained from the extraction of cooked agave. Armed with this delicious nectar few things can go wrong. Fermentation is one of the blessings of nature and here there is little more than letting time work its magic. For many decades we have been cultivating and reproducing the particular strain of yeast responsible for conducting the fermentation of our products which is a blend of wild with a very special yeast used in wine. A delightful range of aromas begins to emerge from the mash. No accelerants are added in this process that can take from 5 to 8 days.
Every detail is paramount to produce excellent tequila and distillation is truly a master’s art. Don Fulano uses copper stills along with a small percentage (16%) of a very particular and unusual continuous distillation tower to distill its products. This complete and unique combination provides the opportunity to achieve the final blend that merits the name of Don Fulano. Removing a large percentage of heads and tails, only the heart of the distilled nectar is preserved, where the most crystalline fruit, floral and herbal notes concentrate. The distillation is carried to a percentage not exceeding 55% of alcohol by volume.
Aging is one of our greatest passions. The selection of barrels and accurate history of each is something that is always considered. Don Fulano rests in a special combination of new and used barrels (ex-cognac, armagnac and sherry) of French limousine oak. With the exception of our blancos, all are careful blends of different vintages. Notes of maple, black cherry, roasted coffee, vanilla, dark chocolate, cloves and nuts, among many others, result from this careful aging. Tequileña has the largest collection of aged tequilas in the tequila industry. Thousands of liters evaporate into the air each year, being the angels share.
Before being bottled, a panel of tequiliers get together to approve the final blend that will carry the name of Don Fulano. The batch to be bottled is tasted along with the last 3 batches for approval of consistency. All Don Fulano bottles are uniquely handmade by local artisans. Don Fulano Blanco, Fuerte, Reposado and Añejo is packaged in uniquely colored blown-glass while Don Fulano Imperial goes into a high temperature ceramic decanter.
Don Fulano Blanco is colorful in notes; it’s the finest expression of a Highland lineage. The careful selection of mature agaves reveals the exquisite variety of its terroir. Abundant reminiscence of damp red soil which opens the senses and awakens the appetite. It has a fruitful style, with lots of character and yet, it is elegant. Cooked agave fully expresses itself with delicate notes of butterscotch and olive. The spice is balanced with a prolonged citrus finish. This fine mixture of aromas and flavors dances freely while one enjoys its craft and absolute purity.
Incomparable appetitive and perfect to marry with oysters and fresh cheese.
AWARDS:
GOLD – Spirit Masters Competition – London
SILVER – Beverage Testing Institute – Chicago
GOLD – Spirits of Mexico Festival – San Diego
One of a Kind. Don Fulano Fuerte is profoundly aromatic; a tequila for the connoisseur and the epicurean. Inexplicably full of spice and flavor and yet, absolutely mellow with floral glimmers of jasmine and orange blossom; even coconut and tropical aromas are present. It immediately dissipates the clouds to reveal the sun of the Highland plateau. It brings a direct connection with the agave fields, with the terroir, with its patient organic fermentation and its masterful distillation in copper alembics. Full bodied and generous in its complexity, its finish is intense and prolonged.
Delightful to sip on its own or unbeatable for the creation of sophisticated cocktails.
AWARDS:
DOUBLE GOLD – Tequila Association of Japan – Tokyo
(Best in Class)
Don Fulano Reposado is extraordinarily balanced between its fresh agave flavors and the character of its long repose. A signature blend of aged tequilas with a minimum of eight months – and up to 2 years – in a combination of new and used barrels of French limousine oak. The spice is fuller with rich fruit notes of pear and cherry compote. The gentle notes of cooked agave as well as previously hidden glitters of dark chocolate, maple and nutmeg appear from its depth. Medium bodied, Its fruitful style remains in mouth.
Don Fulano Reposado is perfect to sip along complex dishes, red meats and mature cheese.
AWARDS:
GOLD – Beverage Testing Institute – Chicago
GOLD – Spirits of Mexico Festival – San Diego
Don Fulano añejo is unlike others. It is not predominantly sweet or overpowered by wood. It has absolutely no added sugars, colors or anything, for that matter. The agave notes are present and intense. It is full of spice and character from its terroir. A subtle chocolate fudginess comes from the depth, baked banana and a fine mixture of dried fruits, almonds and roasted coffee beans along with a subtle floral note frame its intense personality. Again, It is a blend of different aged tequilas of a minimum of 30 months in French Limousine Oak. Its finish is slightly dry and prolonged.
Wonderful digestive to pair with dark chocolate; perfect to close a wonderful dinner.
AWARDS:
PLATINUM – Beverage Testing Institute – Chicago
Don Fulano Imperial is our oldest. Exceptionally smooth and complex with a great combination of elegance and power. Abundant in fruit notes and spices like clove and nutmeg. Deep notes of maple and dark chocolate, tobacco and a lavish aroma of black cherries frame its defined style. It is velvety and permanent in mouth. Superlative.
AWARDS:
DIOSA MAYAHUEL to the Excellence 2006 y 2007 –
Academia Mexicana del Tequila – México
PLATINUM – Beverage Testing Institute – Chicago
(Best in Class) 97/100. Superlative!!
DOUBLE GOLD – Tequila Association of Japan – Tokyo
GOLD – Spirits of Mexico Festival – San Diego
CLICK HERE to read more about our previous tequila of the week promotions!
CLICK HERE to read our Agave Bible
For the third year in a row we are finalist for Australia’s Tequila Bar of the Year at the Australian Bartender Bar Awards. The awards are held in Sydney next Tuesday (18th) evening.
Thank you everyone who voted!
DID YOU KNOW:
we have Australia’s largest collection of agave spirits
we only stock 100% agave tequila (if you don’t know what this means, come in and ask us)
when we opened we held just over 100 bottles of agave, we now range more than 300 bottle.
EACH WEEK AT HOT TAMALE WE SPOTLIGHT A DIFFERENT TEQUILA FOR EVERYONE TO ENJOY, THIS WEEK WE HAVE CHOSEN TO SHOWCASE SIETE LEGUAS.
SIETE LEGUAS D´ANTAÑO is there premium extra anejo and for this week only we will be doing it HALF PRICE. Usually $40 a shot, we will be serving this beautiful tequila for $20.
Intensively yellow, with golden shades and strong body. The nose offers fruity and delicate spices notes. The agave elegantly tinges this aromatic harmony, keeping its olfactory promise in the mouth. For 5 years, the coat of the barrel prints its sophisticated style, becoming the frame that highlights its pleasant personality.
Read more about the brand;
TODAY, THAT DREAM HAS BECOME
THE MOST RENOWNED WHITE TEQUILA
“Casa Siete Leguas” started with the promise to create an artisan tequila respecting the original process of this spirit.
Through the years, our greatest legacy, has been the love for the red volcanic soil, the agave, our people and our roots.
From our origins to present time, we know that the right thing will always be to be loyal to our values, and it is thanks to this belief, that we are here today.
Our name lives up to our promise. Siete Leguas, Pancho Villa’s mare, ran beside the leader across the country without surrender, persevering his mission and spirit: to be true to his word.
Our process begins with the seed, where our red soil of all our fields mixes with the agave to give as a result the best harvest.
It is the essence of our red soil of Atotonilco El Alto, which makes our agaves always be distinguished
Once the agave is mature, the leaves are removed from the heart of the plant leaving only the base or ball, taking on a new descriptive name: piña.
The piña go through a selection process, where sugar levels are measured to ensure the highest quality of our agave juice.
After carefully selecting the piña, these are chopped and placed in artisan ovens, where they are steamed and cooked slowly. Our stokers carry a daily log to ensure perfect cooking resulting in the flavor concentrate that distinguishes us.
Our hallmark. The Tahona is a traditional method also known as Stone Mill, where piña are introduced to extract their juice through a slowly rotating stone wheel pulled by mules, to extract the precious cooked agave juice.
The agave juice is then fermented for several days in vats. The temperature of the juice rises as yeast convert the sugar into alcohol, the moment when our Tequila acquires its spirit. The rate of the fermentation is a key factor to the quality of our Tequila.
After the fermentation phase, our juice is poured to our traditional copper stills, to remove any excess solids and remaining fibers, and to start distillation. The juice is then filtered to create agave nectar or syrup. The agave nectar has the natural solids removed through a fine filtration process, liberating 7 Leguas spirit.
Check out their website here.
Want to read more about the agave spirits we have on offer? Hot Tamale’s Agave Bible lists through all our agave spirits with a great snippet of information or head to our Agave Spirits Forum to read through our previous ‘Tequila of the Week’ promotions.
EACH WEEK AT HOT TAMALE WE SPOTLIGHT A DIFFERENT TEQUILA FOR EVERYONE TO ENJOY, THIS WEEK WE HAVE CHOSEN TO SHOWCASE CHAYA TEQUILA.
Chaya tequila was created by the former president of the popular Mexican liqueur; Kahlua. He created a tequila that was specifically chosen to be marketed to the US and was successful when it was the first tequila to be given as a gift in the MTV Movie Awards in 2006.
REPOSADO + ANEJO FOR $15
Want to read more about the agave spirits we have on offer? Hot Tamale’s Agave Bible lists through all our agave spirits with a great snippet of information or head to our Agave Spirits Forum to read through our previous ‘Tequila of the Week’ promotions.
For all those who love a great tequila, and for those who are yet to be convinced today, is the day for you. Happy International Tequila Day. We will be celebrating at Hot Tamale with discounted flights on our favourite tequilas as well as bringing you the important information on the history and process on this magical liquid.
Well, Mexico of course. Though not Mexico as we know it now, Mexico before the Spanish invaded. Pulque, a beverage of fermented agave juice – sort of like a agave beer has been traced to the early 1500s when the Mayans, Aztecs & Zapotecas would give it to their warriors, priests and even their sacrifices.
Where did they discover Pulque? There is no set story but my favourite is an agave was struck by lightning the juices that flowed began fermenting. A little birdy came down for a drink and flew in circles of pure joy! This was seen by someone and they wanted to experience that kind of joy, so they began creating their own pulque.
Time passes, the Spanish invaded and took control over Mexico – with them they brought their wines & brandies. Though their stock did not last forever and they eventually had to find a new source to create liquor from. Luckily they brought their cognac stills with them. They observed the Zapotecas brewing their pulque and decided to distill and boom! The birth of Vino de Mezcal or Mezcal Wine – this was around 1630.
The process of Mezcal developed through time, and the first legally registered distillery in Mexico happened in 1758. Most mezcals were being made from the espadin agave due to the easier cultivation & flavour – though they were basically making it from any type of agave. Through the next 50 years they had times of prohibition and regulations put in though the process of creating Mezcal today is still very traditional and not uncommon to be created by a village or a family working together.
Mezcal is known from it characteristic of being very smoky – this is created through the cooking process of the heart of the agave – the pina. Traditionally they dig a large hole in the ground and fill it with coal and the agaves in which they cooked & smoked. This can last for days. Once the agaves are ready they crush them to extract the agave juice, which they ferment & distill to create mezcal.
In the late 1700s, there was talk of this great mezcal coming from an area next to a volcano. The volcano was called Tequila! Have you heard of the Mezcal de Tequila? Mezcal from Tequila? In the region of Jalisco, an agave which is now referred as the blue tequilana weber (since 1902) grew in abundance. It looked very similar to the espandin though had a blue tinge to it – we now know it is a relative agave, kind of like a grandson.
In 1795, Jose Antonio Cuervo & his son Jose Guadalupe Cuervo received rights from the Spanish Crown, King Charles IV to commercially bottle & sell their Mezcal from Tequila. This happened for the first time in 1800.
Naturally other distilleries started getting certification and distributing their own Mezcal de Tequila. Through the years a few events relating to the US helped grow the industry – it started with the American-Mexican War where US troops entered Mexico and tried Mezcal Wine for the first time. Then again during the mid to late 1800s in the civil war, moonshine production in the US had slowed due to the fighting so Mexican Vendors took the opportunity to transport their Mezcal Wine to the US to sell. To do this they acquired discarded whiskey barrels to use for transport, this is where the trend of aging agave spirits began.
1873, was the year that tequila became its own. No more Mezcal de Tequila – it would now be known as its own category, Tequila. Not only was the difference in the use of agave but due to the market growing different cooking techniques were introduced which gave it a completely different flavour – which we will go through shortly.
The Mexican Revolution was ten years of mayhem and lots of distilleries suffered and closed their doors. Though shortly after WW1 began and US troops were training in the South and would take their time off and go over the border to enjoy a fiesta and put more money in the industry.
1918 the Spanish Influenza hits Mexico, due to the lack of medical supplies Doctors recommend tequila, salt & lime to cleanse and kill bacteria. This is where the American’s tradition of drinking tequila with salt & lime begun.
1919 was huge in the US, prohibition begun. All alcohol consumption was made illegal & a majority of whisky distilleries closed. Mexico became the place of fiestas for the Americans to be able to cross the border and enjoy a tequila or two – this was a huge boost for the Tequila industry and distilleries were popping up very fast. Tequila was now known to Americans as ‘Mexican Whiskey’.
1930s was huge time for cocktail creations, we start seeing the margarita pop up around the place – tequila sales continue to rise.
WWII was devastating for the worlds alcohol industry as it saw many european distilleries destroyed, though for tequila the export went from 21 thousand litres to 4.5 million litres in just 5 years. This is where we see another large group of distilleries open their doors.
Due to the huge growth of tequila in a small amount of time, agave shortages were happening around 1956 and we see the first mixtos hit the market. A mixto tequila is a tequila that is basically ‘watered’ down with various other spirits and flavours added to it. Gross right? Yes these are still available today and give you a terrible hangover due to the mix of sugars in them – have you experience this? Not to worry! It is easy to tell the difference – a true tequila, with 100% Blue Agave will have on the label 100% de agave or something similar.
In 1993 the CRT was formed – Consejo Regulador del Tequila. A non for profit tequila regulation group that promotes, culture & prestige of tequila.
Tequila continued to grow and it still growing fast to this day.
Tequila is similar to champagne or cognac – it has a denomination of region. Tequila can only be produced in five different regions of Mexico. These are Jalisco, Tamaulipas, Michoacán, Guanajuato and Nayarit. Though at this time there are only two distilleries in production outside of Jalisco, these are Corralejo in Guanajuato & Chinaco in Tamaulipas.
Jalisco is home to the town of Tequila, in Jalisco there are two different atmospheric levels in relation to Tequila. You have highland or los altos and valley tequila. Tequila is located in the Valley where as the town of Arandas is in the highlands and is situated close to a majority of the most popular highland distilleries.
Tequila is made from the blue tequilana weber agave – an agave which takes 8 to 12 years mature and has a blue like tinge. The heart of an agave is referred to as a pina as it resembles a pineapple once the leaves are shaved off. An agave must be harvested before the quiote appears. The quiote is a flowering stem in the middle which blooms the flowers that are seedlings for new agaves. The other way agaves reproduce is via a hijuelos or ‘pup’. This is a mini genetic double which grows out the side every couple of years – these pups are replanted for the next harvest.
After the agaves are harvested by a Jimador – they are transported back to the distillery to be cooked. In tequila production, agaves are cooked traditionally in a ‘hornos’ or oven. In more modern or mass produced tequila distilleries you will find autoclaves – these are similar to pressure cookers.
The agaves can be cooked between 6 hours are multiple days depending on which method and what the distillery wants out of the agave.
To then extract the aguamiel or honey water they crush the agave. The traditional method is which a tahona wheel pulled by a donkey, around a circle. The modern workmanship includes a machine called a shredder mill which is a conveyor belt which takes the agave through shredding teeth multiple times to extract the aguamiel.
The aguamiel is then left to ferment and become alcoholic – an agave beer. This is usually around 6% alcohol. Tequilas are then distilled either two or three times, depending on the characteristics the distiller wants out of their tequila. Twice distilled tequilas usually have more agave & earthy notes. After the first distillation it is called ordinario at roughly 26%, a very earthy flavour and not very pleasant. Second distillation comes out anywhere between 40% and 55%.
After distillation it can be bottled or rested in stainless steel and be called Tequila, this is a blanco tequila. A blanco tequila can be rested in oak barrels for up to two months and still wear this age statement. If you leave the spirit in the barrel for 2 months to 12 month it is then a reposado ‘rested’ tequila. From 1 year to 3 years it is an anejo ‘aged’ and 3 years plus is an extra anejo.
Tequila of the Week is about showcasing a tequila we love and giving our guests an experience to learn about it & try it. This week it is La Certeza.
Lunazul was founded by Francisco Beckmann, a seventh generation descendent of Jose Antonio de Cuervo. He sold his stake in the family distillery in 1992, but kept his share of the agave fields to pursue his personal goal: to distill the some of the best tequilas in the world. He founded the Tierra de Agaves estate in 2004 and soon after began producing Lunazul tequilas. Francisco passed along the tradition to his own son, Jorge Beckmann, who became president of Tierra de Agaves in 2005. Tierra de Agaves is a distillery that is responsible for multiple tequilas, including La Certeza.
Certeza means certainty. It is the culmination of the perseverance and unwavering dedication of its makers the embodiment of exceptional tequila. So pure, so exquisite, that it has been kept a secret from the rest of the world for over 200 years… until now.