Are All Tequilas Made Of 100 Percent Blue Weber Agave
Nearly all premium tequilas are made entirely from blue Weber agave , but there’s another category of tequila called “mixto” in which blue Weber agave need only compose 51 percent of the spirit. Producers utilize various types of sugar to make up the remaining percentage, including high fructose corn syrup and molassesalthough sometimes a lightly processed Mexican cane sugar known as piloncillo is what’s used. If your bottle doesn’t indicate on the label that it’s made from 100 percent agaveand if the price is on the lower end of the spectrumthere’s a good chance that you’re dealing with a mixto. While less expensive, these tequilas don’t reflect a historically anthentic approach to the composition of the spirit.
Proudly Made In Mexico
Patron is known for making high-quality and smooth tequila fermented , a fruit commonly found in hot and arid regions of Mexico. Patron tequila was originally produced by Casa 7 Leguas, one of Mexicos oldest distilleries.
Since being introduced to the world in 1989, Patron has become well-known in popular culture circles, often referenced in movies, television, and the music industry. In January of 2018, Patron was actually bought by Bacardi, the worlds largest private spirits company for approximately $5.1 million.
Types Of Patron Tequila
Silver Patrón’s premium blanco Tequila that is clean, zingy and refreshing, with good agave purity.
Reposado meaning ‘rested’ in Spanish, Patrón Reposado is aged to develop complex flavours the ideal midpoint between Blanco and Añejo styles. A fabulous Tequila.
XO Cafe Coffee Liqueur this rich, full-flavoured liqueur is made with Patrón Tequila and coffee essence. Want to make an Espresso Martini? You’ll need some of this. It’s also great poured over vanilla ice cream.
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Guillermo Del Toro’s Patrn Tequila Explained
Director Guillermo del Toro once teamed with Patrón to make a special edition tequila, but what is its backstory and can it still be purchased?
Here’s Guillermo del Toro’s Patrón tequila explained, and if it is still available to buy. Long before designing his own Patrón tequila, Guillermo del Toro made his directorial debut with the low-budget vampire movie Cronos. This set up many of his recurring themes and concepts, including a sympathetic monster at its core. In the years since del Toro has often switched between more blockbuster fare like Pacific Rim and the Hellboy movies to personal projects like Pan’s Labyrinth or The Shape Of Water.
Guillermo del Toro’s next movie will be the all-star noir thriller Nightmare Alley, starring Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett and Toni Collette. Of course, del Toro has many other interests outside of filmmaking and has worked in other mediums. Guillermo del Toro co-wrote The Strain trilogy of novels with Chuck Hogan, which was later adapted into a series for FX. He also collaborated with Hideo Kojima on the video game sequel Silent Hills, which was infamously canceled by Konami in 2015.
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The Spirit Of Sustainability
Patrón is also well-regarded for its commitment to sustainability. The company tries to ensure its entire production process is eco-friendly and environmentally conscious.
For example, the remains of the agave hearts are composted and used on the haciendas garden and also shared with the local community. The company has also installed a natural gas pipeline to reduce carbon emissions. And the hacienda has a reverse osmosis irrigation system that recovers around 70% of wastewater from the production process.
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How To Drink Patrn Tequila
There are ways to enjoy tequila besides slinging it back with salt and lemon. A premium spirit like Patrón Tequila is best savoured, sipped slowly, like a whisky or brandy.
Try Patrón Tequila neat to begin with, either in a traditional rocks glass or in a snifter if you want to explore the drinks nuanced aromas.
Pour Patrón over ice if you want it chilledor shake it with ice then strain into a glass without. And, like whiskey, you can also experiment with adding a few drops of water.
Patrn Tequila Cocktail Recipes
Patrón Tequila is a fantastic base for all sorts of cocktails with its unique agave flavour. You can even use tequila as an alternative to vodka in a Bloody Mary. Love a G& T? Then youll love Patrón Tequila with grapefruit sodaa drink known as a Paloma.
Pick up a bottle of Patrón Silver tequila online. Its the best one for cocktails. Or experiment with the Citronge line or the Patrón XO Cafe.
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Most Versatile: Corralejo Reposado
Region: Guanajuato, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Honey, Peppercorn, Oak
Jenny Harris, bar manager of San Diego’s Point Loma Fish Shop, says you cant lose with this reposado produced at Tequilera Corralejo. Located east of Jalisco in the neighboring state of Guanajuato, this distillery is rated among tequilas top 100 by the Sanschagrins Tequila Matchmaker user base. This reposado is aged in American oak barrels, giving off an oaky profile that Harris particularly likesalong with flavors of peppercorn, honey, and, of course, agave. Its a tequila that starts with a woody, nutty aroma, rolls sweetly over the palate, and finishes with a slightly bitter spiciness.
Neat, on the rocks, or in a cocktail, is always going to be delicious and smooth. Jenny Harris, bar manager of San Diego’s Point Loma Fish Shop
This Set Has Four Different Types Of Patron So There’s Something For Everyoneand Every Drink
We love Costco more than we can put into words. The famous big-box chain always has exactly what were looking for in enormous quantities at superb prices. Earlier this year, they were selling a giant jar of Reeses Pieces, and just recently, delicious hot cocoa bombs have started showing up for the holiday season. They come with marshmallows inside the chocolate.
Thats not all we love Costco for, though. They also have some of the best weekend sippers in the game. You know, like this sweet new gift set featuring eight mini bottles of Patron!
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The History Of Patron
Patrón is the brainchild of two entrepreneurs, John Paul DeJoria and Martin Crowley, whose love of Tequila and desire to create the best Tequila in the world led them to a factory high in the mountains of Jalisco, Mexico, producing an extraordinary spirit. A few changes later, Patrón Tequila, now the worlds top-selling ultra-premium Tequila, was ready for market, and The Patrón Spirits Company was born.
Best Under $: Los Arango Blanco
Region: Guanajuato, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Vanilla, Agave, Herbs
Produced at Tequilera Corralejo in the state of Guanajuato, Jaliscos eastern neighbor, Los Arango Blanco is made with agave steamed relatively quickly in a high-pressure autoclave, then crushed with a roller mill, and distilled in a copper pot. Its one of the best blancos on the market, and at a great price, says Stevie Latona, bar manager at San Diegos Lionfish restaurant. Along with vanilla notes, the toasted agave and fresh herb flavors, he says, create a soft, smooth taste on the rocks or in a cocktail, its one of my go-tos.”
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Cherry, Mint, Pepper
A NOM is a number used to indicate the distillery in which the tequila is made. To produce this special bottle of ArteNOM, distiller Jake Lustig teamed up with the Camarenas, the family that owns and operates NOM 1579, Jaliscos Destileria el Pandillo. Brick-oven, steam-roasted agave is crushed by a special tahona called Frankenstein, jerry-rigged out of scavenged parts: a junkyard cylinder and an old train wheel axle. After copper pot distilling with a mix of rain and well water, its left to oxidize overnighta key process as oxygen accentuates the blancos fruity nature. Cherry and papaya notes mingle with mint and pepper in a spirit with a big, silky mouthfeel.
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Best Overall: Fuenteseca Cosecha 2018
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 45.7% | Tasting Notes: Cinnamon, Olive, Brine
This tequila is a cult favorite among experts, as Yana Volfson, the beverage manager at Cosme and ATLA restaurants in New York, calls it beautiful. Enrique Fuenteseca, the farmer and distiller behind the bottle, chooses the ripest agave in his own estate, subjects the piñas to the autoclave-and-roller mill treatment, and lets the pot-distilled spirit rest in stainless steel tanks afterward for three years. The resulting blanco, says Grover Sanschagrin, is super heavy on the cinnamon, olive, and brine notesits just amazing. Perfect for tequila aficionados, the limited-production Fuenteseca Cosecha 2013 is a worthy collectible.
Does All Tequila Have To Be Made In The Town Of Tequila
No, but there is a strong historical connection between the spirit known as tequila and the town from which it takes its name. Located about sixty kilometers from Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco, Santiago de Tequila is where much of the original distillation of the blue Weber agave plant took place, and centuries-old distilleries are still in operation there today. The town is also the location of the Museo Nacional de Tequila , and is the hub of most of Jalisco’s tequila-based tourism.
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Best Cristalino: 1800 Cristalino
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Sweet, Smooth, Peppery
A recent innovation, cristalino is made by stripping the color from aged tequila. Its essentially a way to circumvent the steep pricing of agave due to crop shortages by using what distillers already have in stock. The 1800 Cristalino is a good bottle to uncork when drinking with non-tequila fans. Blended from 16-month-old añejo aged in American and French oak, its rested for an additional six months in former port barrels before double filtering. As youd expect, its sweet on the nose and the palate, with a luscious mouthfeel, but it finishes with some of the pepperiness that bespeaks the agave. Sip this neat or on ice.
It All Began With A Bottle
Patrón was founded by John Paul DeJoria and his friend, Martin Crowley in 1989. Industry legend has it that Crowley bought his buddy back a bottle of tequila from Mexico. While the spirit inside was nothing special, the bottle was beautiful enough to inspire the two to venture into the world of tequila-making.
With the companys passion for quality, eye for detail, and marketing know-how, they have transformed tequila into something enjoyed and prized by the worlds drinking elite, and Patrón is now the worlds biggest premium tequila brand.
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Best For Margaritas: Casa Dragones Blanco
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Herbaceous, Green peppercorn, Anise
Instead of sipping this high-end tequila, Volfson recommends trying it in a margarita. A margarita is about the relationship of three ingredients: tequila, triple sec, and limes,” she says. This tequila from Maestra Tequilera Bertha González Nieves gives off flavors of soft herbaceousness and grassy garden crispness, green peppercorn and fennel seed, cardamom, anise seed, and a bit of juiciness, which Volfson feels mingle well with the bright cirtus character of the triple sec and lime juice.
“The layers of orange blossom in Casa Dragones, along with the orange in the triple sec, brings together the drinks fruitinessthe recipe doesnt need as much lime juice as others, so it showcases the spirits with each other. Yana Volfson, beverage manager at Cosme and ATLA restaurants in New York
A Premium Tequila Requires Premium Pias
Patrón tequila is made at the Hacienda Patrón, a colonial mansion located in the Jalisco Highlands in Mexico.
One of the many things that make Patrón specialand allows it to charge drinkers such a steep priceis the fact that its made entirely from the blue weber agave plant.
This is a plant that takes eight or so years to reach the requisite level of ripeness, but Patrón is well rewarded for its patience. By waiting for the plant to fully ripen, the brands jimadores take advantage of its optimum level of sweetness, hand-selecting those piñasor fruitswith the highest sugar content.
The difference is impressive. While the average piña is 22% sugar, those used by Patrón are 26% sugar.
These piñas are then chopped and cooked in small brick ovens for around 70 hours to help the sugars break down. The fruit is then crushed and ground using a mix of the modern Roller Mill method and the traditional Tahona wheel.
The latter is a labour-intensive process that involves chiselling a chunk of volcanic stone into a wheel. This wheel is then pulled with a mechanical arm across the roasted agave hearts to extract the juice.
This method is around 500 years old and originally donkeys were used to haul the stone. Youll be glad to hear no donkeys suffer in the making of Patrón, but their modernised version of the Tahona wheel is part of the reason their tequila tastes so good.
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Best For Sipping: El Tesoro Aejo
Courtesy of leesliquorlv.com
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Citrus, Spice, Brown butter
Like any fine spirit served neat, a good sipping tequila should be smooth, velvety, and nonabrasivebut, simultaneously, should still taste like tequila, rather than trying to mimic the characteristics of whiskey, or vodka, or anything else.
The añejo from El Tesoro is a classically-styled tequila that checks all those boxes: it’s soft and silky, a result of two to three years of aging in American oak ex-bourbon barrels, but it’s not as flush with caramel or vanilla as certain añejos that receive a more heavy-handed aging treatment. Consequently, the flavor of the agave really comes throughno surprise for a brand that prides itself on traditional production methods, from crushing the agave with a volcanic stone tahona to fermenting in open wooden vats with ambient yeasts. The El Tesoro añejo is an ideal choice the next time you’re craving the vibrancy of raw agave character without wanting to bother with ice or with lime.
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 46% | Tasting Notes: Cinnamon, Olives, Grapefruit peel
Best Value: Pueblo Viejo Blanco
courtesy of Checkersliquors.com
Region: Jalisco, Mexico | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: White pepper, Agave, Mint
Tequila’s popularity has skyrocketed in recent years, and the top bottles now command cultish prices formerly reserved for the rarest of Scotches and small-batch bourbons. But there are still plenty of great values for those with the patience to seek them outand it’s hard to think of an inexpensive tequila that over-delivers on quality quite like Pueblo Viejo. A secret favorite in the mixologist comminity, Pueblo Viejo blanco is crafted using 100 percent blue Weber agave, which is cooked in stone and brick ovens and crushed by a traditional rolling mill called a tahona. The classically-made tequila boasts a nose of white pepper and a rustic, unapologetic palate replete with bright agave and fresh mint.
Once you claw your way through the limited-production bottlings and the celebrity vanity projects, you’ll discover that solid tequila can still be found at budget pricesand the Pueblo Viejo blanco is Exhibit A.
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Take A Sip Of This Iconic Mexican Spirit
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Liquor / Chloe Jeong
Every spirit has its “moment”sometimes more than onceand just like whiskey in the pre-prohibition era, rum in the midcentury tiki craze, and vodka in the swingin’ sixties and seventies, tequila is currently the darling of the spirits world. Nutrition consultants saddle it with various health claims , and it seems like every day that yet another celebrity is launching a new tequila brand. However, to longtime aficionados like Grover and Scarlet Sanschagrin, the Jalisco-based founders of the website Tequila Matchmaker, there’s something to be said for the old, artisan production methods and for the flavors they yield: herbs, spices, and the briny, bittersweet signature of agave.
But the sheer volume of tequila brands currently competing for shelf space means that there’s truly a bottle out there for every consumer. The Consejo Regulador del Tequila, the spirits regulatory body, lists 1,754 tequilas currently in productionand these include bottles labeled blanco , reposado , añejo , and several other increasingly esoteric categories. Whether you like your tequila neat or mixed with cocktails, here are the best tequilas available today.
Where Is Patron Tequila Made
The Patrón factory is located in the small town of Atotonilco, and is a multimillion-dollar facility with a guest hacienda where 700 employees create by hand the Tequila that goes into every bottle. The Patrón Spirits Company, headquartered in Las Vegas, now imports and markets a portfolio of the fine top-quality spirits, including its signature Patrón Tequila line, which includes Patrón Silver and Patrón XO.
Patróns success is due in no small part to its founders hunch early on that consumers were ready for an ultra-premium Tequila. In the short time since it was introduced, Patrón has outsold all other ultra-premium Tequilas in the world combined.
The companys other products Patrón XO Café , Patrón Citrónge and Pyrat rums have also earned their own acclaim by carving out a growing slice of the fine spirit market.
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