Tequila

(Community Matters) Following our quest to identify the best gins, Graham Reynolds and I met at La Condessa (home to 80+ tequilas) to identify their best.  Our bartender offered to prepare flights.  As I learned at Peche in September, Graham is as meticulous & knowledgeable about the liquors & wines he likes as he is about musical form.

I should have remembered, tequila is a term – much like Champagne – denoting a well defined region surrounding the city of Tequila, northwest of Guadalajara, in the highlands of Jalicsco, Mexico and made of only blue agave.  While, a similar spirit made outside of that region and/or of other agaves is called a Mezcal.

Tequilas (broadly) usually categorized as either blanco (silver or white, aged less than 2 months), Joven (young & gold, colored with caramel flavor which tones down its harshness), Reposada (rested – aged a minimum of 2 months but less than a year), Anejo (aged at least 1 year but less than three in oak barrels), Extra Anejo (aged at least 3 years in oak barrels).  Mezcal can be distilled in the traditional way or within a batch of coals, giving it a wonderfully complex smoky taste.

We tasted 5 mezcals and 4 tequilas (Graham already had a bias for the smokey flavor of mezcal).  The blancos aren’t even in the game.  The mezcals stand out immediately – even if just to the nose.  Our favorites were los Danizantes Mezcal Repasado (aged one year in French oak barrels) and Jose Cuervo Reserva de la Familia (aged 3 years in barrels of American & French oak).

Of course, it’s always even more a treat to spend a few hours soaking up the broad curiosity, artistry & graciousness of Graham – who’s currently working on the Richard Linklater movie with Jack Black & Shirley McLain. I don’t know if we’re ready to concede tequilas before moving on to our next tastings (I’m voting for Four Seasons on La Reforma – 400 tequilas), wines may figure into the next group of tastings, though admittedly more difficult to assemble flights of the best representatives.