All about Tequila

[SLB]

2 hours ago, Nancy in Pátzcuaro said:

We prefer blanco tequilas, sometimes called Silver or Platinum, for its clean agave flavor. Here in México of course there is an abundance of tequila, from blanco to reposado (rested) and añejo. Reposado tequila is "rested" in oak casks left over from bourbon production for at least a month, and añejo ("aged") is left in casks for as long as a year or more. For cocktail purposes I would recommend a blanco or light reposado. Hornitos is a good choice for margaritas--not expensive and readily available. For "sipping" tequila many people like an añejo, but we stick with  blanco.

 

Nancy speaks for me.  It took me probably fifteen years to admit that I actually do not like añejo tequila in anything.  If fact, I only modestly like it neat, and would always privilege the reposado option for that kind of thing.  

 

With the recent rage of "artisanal" tequilas, maybe I'll revisit the añejo universe.

 

 

 

[haresfur]

I like a 50:50 mix of blanco:reposado in margaritas. Gives some extra depth. Substituting añejo for rhum in a ti punch and using agave syrup is nice but I wouldn't use it for anything else except sipping. Reposado works for that, too.

[Nancy in Pátzcuaro]

There are many small distilleries in México, most of which are totally unknown outside of their local neighborhoods. Of course the town of Tequila is central to all of it, even though tequila can be legitimately produced in a few other neighboring states. Our new fave is Fortaleza, which comes in 2 versions--Fortaleza, 40%, and Los Abuelos, 46%. Trust me--you will never find this in your local liquor store. We buy it at the distillery in Tequila. Comes with a pretty bottle, and the stopper looks like a piña, the heart of the agave plant. We're collecting the tops because we want to replace the knobs on our bathroom cabinets and drawers.

 

Espolón is widely available, at least in blanco and reposado. Olmeca Altos is also widely available, and I like how peppery the blanco is. I've seen both of these brands in the US. Don't know about Australia. 

 

An interesting thing is that you can identify the distillery by their NOM, which identifies which distillery made the tequila you're drinking. This can be looked up via internet, and often reveals that your favorite is actually made by somebody you've never heard of.

[blue_dolphin]

46 minutes ago, Nancy in Pátzcuaro said:

Our new fave is Fortaleza, which comes in 2 versions--Fortaleza, 40%, and Los Abuelos, 46%. Trust me--you will never find this in your local liquor store

While Fortaleza tequila is widely available in my area of the US, you're quite correct on never finding Los Abuelos in the US.  That was the original name when the company started but they ran into trademark issues with established rum brand Ron Abuelo and settled on Fortaleza as the name for international markets. 

[Nancy in Pátzcuaro]

You're absolutely right. After I wrote that I looked at a few tequila review sites and discovered that Fortaleza is in fact available. It has a big brother (or sister) in Los Abuelos, with a higher alcohol percentage, which makes it taste more like mezcal, or at least my husband thinks so. I prefer the lower alcohol level of Fortaleza.

 

Many years ago there was a website from a dedicated tequila drinker that went into great detail about the virtues and/or disappointments of various tequilas, and endless discussion about distillation processes. I don't remember the name of it now, but surely there are others like it. 

 

So I stand corrected. Thanks--we have friends in the US who will be glad to hear this.