equila terroir c a n y o u t e l l a t e q u i l a b y i t s r e g i o n ? By Jack Robertiello

T year at the very highest end, with volume up among super-premiums s Americans continue to get by 10.6%, the fastest growing part of the business. And while te- smart about – what it quila is only the seventh leading spirits category in volume, with 10.6 is, where it comes from, how million 9-liter cases sold here last year, it accounted for nearly $1.6 A billion in gross revenues in 2008, making it the fifth largest revenue- it’s supposed to taste and how to drink it – producing category. more and more brands are being made and DISCUS revealed that value–priced last year were up marketed with U.S. consumers in mind. 6.4% in volume; premium, the largest category by far, was down 1.3%; while high-end premium was down 9.2%. For comparison pur- poses, Juarez is a typical value brand, while Cuervo Especial is a Ever since blazed a path of success by focusing on high- premium, Sauza Hornitos a high-end premium and Don Julio Anejo end imagery, many other tequilas have been developed with high a super-premium. hopes for similar results. And some have succeeded. Super-premium tequilas were one of the high points for the entire According to the most recent statistics released by the Distilled spirit business in 2008, according to DISCUS. Those brands (mostly Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), tequila boomed last extra anejos aged a minimum of three years, but also aging and finish- promotions focusing on launch support, the new ad campaign of “Living Notoriously Well” and on-and off-premise activities re- volving around the margarita.

Product ing experiments) including Cuervo Reserva de la Familia, Gran Centenario Leyenda, Differentiation Partida Elegante, Bordeaux-barrel finished director of the portfolio for Dia- Meanwhile, new brands, like Lunazul (which Gran Patrón Burdeos and others, have im- geo, notes that 60% of growth has come from took a silver and a gold medal at last year’s pressed journalists and consumers alike. silver tequilas. “Having a silver version of San Francisco World Spirits Competition) Additionally, the quality halo emanating Cuervo is a massive growth opportunity,” and El Diamonte del Cielo (praised by both from these brands is just another way that he says. “This particular launch is the single Paul Pacult’s Spirit Journal and by the Bev- tequila is seen to be improving. Not bad for biggest opportunity that Cuervo has had in a erage Testing Institute) continue to arrive, a spirit that even a few years ago many con- very long time.” Very smooth with a slight, looking for an edge. The crowded market- sumers still thought of in terms of salt and sweet taste of , the Especial Silver tar- place is spurring brand owners and importers limes, worms and frat parties. gets males 21-29 (“the bullseye target is 21- to refine their marketing pitches. This summer, Patrón will implement 24, a consumer a year or two out of college Sapphire Brands' Cielo Tequila has de- a summer mixology program, highlight- finding his way in the world”) designed to be veloped an original flavor profile through its ing the versatility and mixability of Patrón consumed as a frozen shot, although it works tri-barrel aging process. Both its reposado Silver and Patrón Citronge, through three well in margaritas, too. Looking ahead to and añejo tequilas pass time in , Port key drinks: “Patrón Pomegranate”, “Patrón the summer, Whitmoyer says that Cinco de and bourbon barrels which impart subtle fla- Grapefruit” and “Patrón Pineapple”. Sales Mayo through mid-September, is otherwise vors to the spirit. staff will promote these signature in known as “Cuervo Season”. They plan on One point of difference beyond the in- both the off- and on-premise. spending more than $30 million on ads and herent qualities of unaged silver, lightly aged Things have gotten so hot that more and more retailers, especially those doing business in California and the southwestern states, are having a hard time keeping those super-premiums on the shelf. Says Zack Romaya, owner of two San potlight Diego area and spirits shops, the expen- on mezcal sive tequilas he stocks in his Old Town Wine and Spirits shop fly out the door: “It used to While tequilaS has undergone a renaissance in recent years, Mezcal is still somewhat be that single malts were the big high-end shrouded in obscurity. While both are produced from the agave , the process for spirits, but for me now, unusual and very Mezcal differs. expensive items like the $2,500 Dos Lunas, or the $1,300 Asom Broso 11 year old, are • While tequila is made exclusively from • Mezcal is synonymous with the Oax- attracting the collectors.” Romaya stocks the Blue Agave plant, mezcal can be aca region, tracing its roots back to more around 500 tequilas in his store, many of made from many types of agave. than 400 years; tequila is associated with them in the $40-$70 range, but except for 's region. • Tequila only has to be made with old favorites like Cuervo Gold and Sauza, 51% agave, but all mezcals must contain • “Worms,” the larva of one of two moths few of his customers seem to be looking for 100% agave. that live on the agave plant, are found in mixto tequilas. His tequila customers are di- some bottles of mezcal, not tequila. vided fairly equally into two areas of growth: women looking to explore the smoother side One To Try: Scorpion, one of the leading Mezcals, known for its USFDA-approved scorpion of the spirit through reposado, and men who in the bottle. They've just brought in the Oro de Mezcal, one of the most popular are favoring both silver and anejo. Mezcals, that comes with a small bag of "sal de gusano" (worm salt) on each bottle as well as It was the ideal time for Cuervo’s sig- the Mijes Mezcal, the new Mijes Joven variety in a blue blown-glass bottle with a cork/wax nificant launch of Especial Silver in the stopper. premium price tier. Toby Whitmoyer, brand Category focus

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!7!2$7)..).' reposado, aged anejo and longer aged ex- tra anejo, has often been argued among $/-).!4)/. tequila connoisseurs: whether tequilas /&/2)'). made in the Los Altos highlands (Aran- das, Jesus Maria, Atotonilco el Alto) dif- last year, discus 0%2#%.4 fer significantly from those from the Jalisco reported that the !'!6%-%:#!, valley (Tequila, Amatitan, El Arenal). Highland tequilas are said to be more volume of fruity and sweet, while lowland brands are super-premiums was up said to be more spicy, herbal and earthier. These qualities are mostly evident in silver and sometimes reposado tequilas, which of- 10.6%, fer more natural agave flavors and aromas the fastest growing before the impact of new or used barrels part of the business. takes hold. “Some of my customers know about the areas around Jalisco and the towns and in 2008, tequila highlands,” says Mario Alejandro Marquez, accounted for nearly Tequila ambassador at San Diego’s Café Coyote. “And I do see more of an interest in those differences. I always say that if they $1.6 billion want a tequila with more sweetness, they in gross revenues, may want to try one from the highlands, making it the fifth because the there seem to get riper quicker. When I’m there and compare the largest revenue- piñas of the highlands, they are huge while producing category. those in Jalisco might be smaller.” The highlands are somewhat cooler, which may affect the growth of the agave, 100% from Los Altos, they will tend to be as may the higher iron content visible in sweeter, fruitier with a more floral flavor the rich red soil there. The result, Marquez profile. If you produce one that is 100% says, can mean that lowland tequilas are from the valley, the tequilas will be spicier, dryer and more peppery while the high- with pepper, mint and a little bit of cinna- #!"!,,%2/3).# lands more sweet and crisp. mon and citrus.” 3#/20)/.-%:#!,#/- “Some people from Los Altos like to But the company’s research indicates advertise that there’s a huge difference be- that sugar content rarely differs between  tween the agave from the highlands and comparable agaves from the two areas, those from the valley,” says Ruben Aceves, though the sensory notes that come from international brand development director compounds called terpenes are somewhat for Casa Herradura, producer of Herradura, different. El Jimador and Don Eduardo. “We have More importantly, many lowland pro- proved that if you produce tequila that is ducers, including Herradura, use pinas from )-0/24%$"9#!"!,,%2/ 3 ).# /!+4/. 6!0%2#%.4 ! ,#6/,0%2#%.4!'!6% 3 0)2)4  0 ,%! %$2).+2% 0/. )",9777 #/20)/.-%:#!,#/- Category focus

both regions. Aceves also points out that te- tequila; the industry average is more like 10 or quila is about more than agave location. Are 12, says Takashi Nakamura, global r&d direc- the agaves fully mature? Are they cooked tor, Bacardi Martini. whole or shredded? Are they baked in clay Other brands have been expanding their ovens or steamed in auto-claves? Is the cook- offerings. 1800 last year introduced 1800 ing slow or fast? Is fermentation natural or Silver Select, purported to be the only 100 does yeast come from a lab? Does proof silver tequila in the market. Sauza also occur at low or high proof? Distilled twice or relaunched its Tres Generaciones family of ■ Tequila is made from the blue agave plant, three times? In a column still or pot still or a tequilas with new packaging in January 2009. which resembles a cactus, but is actually combination? One company, though, is making the ar- a member of the lily family. Believe it or Some producers continue to fiddle with gument that where agaves originate matters not, bats pollinate the . Agave plant can take 6-12 years to mature. their processes. For instance, Tequila Ley- dramatically. Ocho is offering limited vintage enda del Milagro offers a second line called release, estate grown agave tequilas, all pro- ■ At the heart of the Blue Agave is the ‘pina’ (similar in appearance to a pineapple) Barrel Select made from older agaves and duced in the highlands, according to Samira which produces the ‘aguamiel’ or ‘honey longer aging times. El Jimador, one of the Seiller, director of communications. Last year water’ that is the source of tequila. leading brands in Mexico, has returned to the company introduced a silver and a repos- ■ Long before the Spanish arrived with a 100% agave formula after a few years as a ado coming from one estate (El Carrizal) and sophisticated methods of distilling, the mixto. , a super-premium from Bacardi’s an anejo from another (El Vergel). With 10 Aztecs were using the agave plant to House of Cazadores, is made through a pro- or so estates available right now, it will take produce a sacred beverage. By cutting away the spiky leaves to expose the cess that ages a double distilled spirit for two about 12 years for each of these tequilas to re- agave’s core, they were able to extract months before distilling a third time. Corzo is turn to market and so comparing them will be its juice and create a milky, mildly also aggressive in the way they distill, using a lifetime experience. It may take longer than alcoholic beverage. 24 pounds of agave for each liter of finished that to settle the tequila terroir question. n ■ Tequila must be produced within certain designated areas of Mexico, most notably, the State of Jalisco. The spirit takes its name from the colonial town of Tequila. ■ NOM is the Norma Offi cial Mexicana, which is the offi cial number assigned by the government to each tequila distillery, lavor identifying which company made or bottled the tequila. Sauza is NOM 1102. orward ■ There are two classifi cations for tequila: F 100% Blue Agave, which must be 100% from Blue Agave and bottled in Quality tequila may be going through a hibiscus flowers. The 80 proof brand, just designated regions in Mexico; and Mixto, boom but not so much in an area where introduced in 2009, is meant for both sip- which 51% must come from Blue Agave and can be shipped in bulk and bottled in other white spirits – and rum, spe- ping or making, according to Mi- other countries. cifically – have expanded their markets: chelle Sanders, senior marketing manager ■ The fi ve different classifi cations of flavors. for importer Proximo. tequila are based on the aging technique: It’s not for want of trying. Cuervo Rosangel isn’t the first flavored te- Blanco, Joven (or Gold), Reposado, Añejo introduced three mixto flavors – Tropina, quila-based spirit: the 64 proof Agavero and Extra Añejo. Oranjo and Citrico a few years ago, and is made from reposado and anejo tequilas ■ The Sauza® Family Distillery, La Persevencia, Mexico was established in Tarantula offers orange, lime, strawberry blended with essence of the damiana 1873 and the Sauza family was the fi rst and banana colada flavors. On the super- flower. Meanwhile, one of the success sto- to call the golden drink “tequila” and the premium level, Tanteo is available in ries in the flavor/cordial arena is Tequila fi rst to export it to the United States. tropical, jalapeño and even chocolate. But Rose, a cream made with “a splash other companies don’t seem to have much of tequila,” according to brand owner Mc- interest at the mixto level. Cormick Distilling company's website. It is Milagro also ventured into the fla- now available in three flavors – strawberry, s³4RES vored category with its Limon and Manda- cocoa and java. All have expanded the Generaciones Plata Tequila rina brand extensions. range of agave based flavors up and down s1 part premium Now comes Gran Centenario Rosan- the spectrum, and it’s a safe bet that if the gel, a 100% agave reposado tequila finished agave supply cooperates, other innovations s1 part Premium orange liqueur in port pipes and infused with flavors from will soon be coming down the pipeline. s1 part fresh lime juice