Wow, there is an entire world of high-end Tequila out there I didn't know about! OMG, what have I been doing with my life? What??
Guess it's time to pay up and see what some of it is about. I will look for Olmeca Altos and Tapatio. Then I gotta try one of your brands of smoky mezcal. If I can tear myself away from Margaritaville
'Course, after this I won't be able to drink that again...hey, darn it FriskyDingo, your educational posts are going to cost me money! It's also Dutch's fault for starting this thread!
Yeah, tequila is very interesting because there are probably more ways to mess it up than any other spirit. So many of the steps are just critical to the end result.
The agave plants take at least 7 yrs before they can be harvested in the first place. That's obviously much longer turn around than a grain crop. Then they have to be cooked properly- in a clay oven. Then they have be crushed- preferably by tahona. Then fermented and distilled- preferably in copper pot stills.
Then, it is either bottled as blanco, or aged to make reposado or anejo.
But there are so many deviations in this process it results in massive disparities in quality and taste from brand to brand.
Some brands use plants that aren't mature enough or have a low sugar content. Some cook the agave pinas in autoclaves, rather than clay ovens. This is like the difference between grilling meat, and cooking it in the oven. Some brands use an even worse method called diffusers. This is like the equivalent of microwaving your food. Then there's how much of the fibrous material that makes tequila bitter is removed.
All of these things result in lower quality products. They are tequila brands that are harsh, taste chemically or over sweetened, or in some cases- too 'smooth' and lacking in flavor- Patron. But they are quicker and save lots of money.
Here's some basic rules-
If it's not 100% agave, don't even look at it. It's going to taste terrible. It will be very harsh, have a lot of burn, and little flavor.
If it says something along the lines of- 'traditionally crafted', 'tahona crushed', says it's cooked in a clay oven, or crushed with a tahona, these are all good signs. This indicates a higher quality product. Most brands aren't doing these things, so the one's that do are proud to announce it.
Glitzy and glamorous bottles/labels/packaging almost always is an indication of lower quality product. There's a direct correlation it seems.
ABOVE ALL- If you are serious about expanding into this world, you absolutely NEED to download an app on your phone called TequilaMatchmaker. It's free, it has info on thousands of brands like their production methods and distillery it's made at, ratings from experts and other users, and more. You can look up brands, put them on your wishlist, rate them and create flavor profiles to use to pick future tequilas. It is a tremendous help.
