After the hype of the vodka, which has pretty much disappeared from our lives, the gin and the cognac, now it's the turn of the tequila to join your kohilim shelf and become the next thing in the world of alcohol.
The development of the cocktail scene and the return of entertainment places to routine after the end of the Corona crisis led to a significant increase in alcohol consumption, and tequila sales also jumped at a double-digit rate (in the US alone there was an increase of about 40%), with the premium brands being the main engine of growth. The data shows that the scope The tequila market in 2021 in Israel reached about NIS 73 million. Quite a bit.
So what exactly is tequila?
An alcoholic distillate produced on the basis of the blue agave plant that grows in five regions of Mexico, the main of which is the state of Jalisco (its capital is Guadalajara) and is protected by local trademarks, so that a drink not produced in those regions cannot be called "tequila".
This is also the reason for the fact that the production quantities of the tequila are limited, hence the many attempts at counterfeiting it.
It's not for nothing that the leading producers emphasize in all their publications that they use 100% blue agave without additives, and many trademarks appear on the bottles to reduce fakes (real tequila must bear the NOM mark of the Mexican authorities and the CRT mark, which confirm that the manufacturer is a recognized member by the government council that oversees the tequila industry in Mexico.
The highest quality tequila drinks are made from 100% blue agave, and the lowest - from mixing the agave products with simple alcohol (usually sugar).
If the alcohol level of the agave falls below 51%, the drink is no longer allowed to be called tequila but mescal (by the way, in the past there were bottles of mescal - and not tequila - that had a moth larva inserted into them as a marketing gimmick, which led to the false myth that a quality tequila bottle must contain a caterpillar. m).
Operating Instructions
The tequila is marketed in three separate aging levels.
The first, "Silver" (or Blanco), without aging at all and intended mainly for cocktails;
the second, "Reposado" (calm in Spanish), with a minimum aging of between two and nine months;
And the third, "Anijo", which ages between one and four years in barrels.
You won't find drinks aged 12 years or more here like in whiskey, because Mexico is much hotter than Scotland and the weather there is quick to show the results of aging in the color and flavors of the drink already after these short periods of time.
The tequila is drunk neat.
The cheaper ones are drunk with the trick of salt before and lemon after, which comes to mask the less flattering flavors;
The best tequilas are recommended to be drunk in snifter glasses, just like brandy, on ice or in cocktails.
Tequila (illustration), photo: Getty Images
Luxury tequila
Several new brands have recently joined the industry, including the luxury corporation LVMH, among others, the owners of the brands Louis Vuitton, Moët & Chandon champagne and Hennessy cognac, owned by the French billionaire Bernard Arnaud, who launched the tequila brand VOLCAN DE MI TIERRA as part of a business partnership with the Mexican Gallardo family.
This is the first time that Moet Hennessy is not purchasing an existing brand, but investing in the development of a distillery and building a product from the ground up - production, development, marketing and distribution, and it is estimated that in the coming years it will become one of the leading tequila brands in the world, alongside other famous brands such as Patron, Don Julio, and more.
Here are our recommendations for special premium tequilas marketed in Israel:
Gran Centenario Reposado
- a new brand in Israel with a great portfolio of all levels of aging, at an accessible price.
The one in front of us was aged for about two months in French and American oak barrels and has a light color.
In the nose aroma of fresh artichoke, fruitiness, roasted almonds.
In the mouth it is refined and nutty, light bodied with a warm finish.
Mainly for margaritas, but also neat with some ice is extremely enjoyable.
(159 NIS)
Patron Anijo - the
tequila perhaps the best known of all, even though it has only been produced since 1994. Produced in Jalisco, Los Altos, in a distillery built near a natural lake on fertile Hamra soil rich in minerals, iron and a high level of acidity.
It undergoes double distillation in small copper boilers, and is aged for about 15 months in wooden barrels.
Its nose is elegant, with caramel orange and honey aromas.
The taste is rich in vanilla and with the addition of a touch of smoke, oily and rich.
lovely
(219 NIS)
The bottles we tasted, photo: Yechat \ Istock
1800 Añejo Cristalino –
Añejo grade tequila that will be aged in American and French barrels for about 22 months, and at the end of the aging it will be filtered through activated charcoal to remove the natural colors added to it from the barrel.
This is a complex tequila with a unique character, with an aroma of yellow blossoms, coffee and greenish artichoke.
In the sip it is sweet and has flavors of caramel, nutmeg and herbs.
The body is medium and the finish is pleasant.
special and wonderful.
(259 NIS)
Volcan Anijo Cristalino -
an extraordinary tequila that is handcrafted from 100% blue agave grown in two different regions of Jalisco - LOWLANDS and HIGHLANDS.
The production of Cristalino is divided into two - a part aged to the grade of Anejo (about one year), filtered by charcoal and returned for further aging in American barrels, and another part aged to the grade of Extra Anejo (3 years), filtered by charcoal and returned to another short aging in French barrels.
At the end, the drinks are blended to create a tequila with a rich aroma of orange and lime, touches of dried fruit, chocolate, vanilla and orange.
Elegant and wonderful.
Also try the herbal blanco fermented on champagne yeast.
(299 NIS)
Zarza Anijo -
another super-premium brand that is making its way these days from Jalisco to the Holy Land.
The brand was created 12 years ago by Michael and Celia Maestri and has already grown to the 11th largest exporter from Mexico.
Made from 100% ripe and sweet blue agave, and aged up to three years in American barrels.
On the nose a woody aroma, rich orange, creamy vanilla and herbs.
Its taste is caramel and rich but refined and the texture is oily and smooth.
prestigious.
(350 NIS)
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