Rider Loves the New Brands!

The Rider of Great Paleness got to sip some mighty tasty new tequilas over the long, sweltering summer. They helped cool my palette and mellow me down in to those long mid-summer eves.
Here are four of my top finds:

Feeling Any Smarter? I sure am!

Calle 23 Reposado: Pale Rider savors this full-bodied repo, bursting with agave goodness! 4.8 PENCAS!
http://tastetequila.com/2011/a-pleasant-tequila-stroll-down-calle-23/
http://www.tequilawhisperer.com/?p=1868
http://tequilacalle23.com/

Hotel California Blanco: Made my summer both as a mixer and an ice-cold sipper. 4.5 PENCAS!
http://www.napacabs.com/Hotel-California-Tequila-Blanco-750ml-P8612.aspx
http://thecritico.net/hotel-california-tequila/
http://www.hotelcaliforniatequilausa.com/the-blanco.html?view=item

Pura Vida Anejo: As rich and smoky as the tone of Pearly Gates. 4.5 PENCAS!
http://www.tequila.net/tequila-reviews/anejos/pura-vida-tequila-anejo.html
http://www.tequilawhisperer.com/?p=2289
http://puravida.mx/tequila.html
Radio Pura Vida: http://puravida.mx/pura-vida-radio.html

Semental Reposado: A big, satisfying tequila.  4.5 PENCAS!
http://www.tequila.net/tequila-reviews/reposados/semental-tequila-reposado.html
http://tequila.findthebest.com/l/414/Semental-Reposado-Tequila
http://www.tequilasemental.com/

Dia Nacionál de Tequila!

It's National Tequila Day once again. Seems like only yesterday it was...well. actually, it WAS only yesterday because in Pale Rider's world, EVERY day is tequila day!

Another Day in Agave Paradise. I wonder what the Cuervo drinkers are doing today. 

As we also do on St. Patrick's Day, we jokingly like to call this date, "Amateur Night," (although we really do like the theme of celebrating tequila).

No need for me to blog - there are plenty other publications writing about agave juice today. Here are a couple:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/24/national-tequila-day_n_1696311.html

http://www.boston.com/thingstodo/gotoit/2012/07/national_tequil.html

Los Blancos Mas Finos!

Blanco, Silver, Plata, Platinum, call it what you will, we're talking today about the un-aged and un-altered clear distillation of the blue agave. Everybody knows Pale Rider is is a big blanco guy. (They don't call me "Pale" for nothin'!) At the recent Spirits of Mexico event in NYC, the new class of 2012 blancos were tasted
and rated. Click here to read all about the fresh crop!

Spirits of Mexico, sizzling new blancos...

Toro Toro! One Smooth Bull!

Semental Tequila: Get a Bull in Your Glass!

I recently read a great review of Semental Tequila on the web-site "For Tequila Lovers.com" and then, as if scripted, the very next day I was at ChiliHead BBQ and noticed they had Semental in their well-appointed tequila bar. Naturally I tried a shot - the reposado - and was VERY impressed. So then I went about getting a bottle for myself. Even with my discount through FTL, it was a pricey bottle. I later found that the price of Semental varies wildly from region to region, being as low as in the $20s in the Southwest and West, ranging to $50 up here in the distribution-challenged Northeast. 

I am MENTAL for SeMENTAL!

Clearly, I am not the only one that likes this Tequila. Here's what the San Francisco World Spirits Competition had to say:

Semental Silver (91 Points/Silver Medal ~ Exceptional): Clear, vibrant roasted pineapple, charred green pepper, floral talc, creamy vanilla, and white pepper aromas. A lively, silky entry leads to a dry-yet-fruity, glycerous medium body of roasted tropical fruits and peppers with a layer of vanilla bean and spice. Finishes with a long, sharp white pepper, oil, powdered sugar and dried flower fade. Impressively fruity and floral agave with a somewhat rustic finish.   

Semental Reposado (93 Points/ Double Gold Medal ~ Exceptional ): Yellow golden color. Creamy and spicy aromas of sandalwood, vanilla bean, dates, dried pineapple, and black pepper. A silky and supple entry leads to a dry-yet- fruity, glycerous medium-to-full body of creamy caramel, vanilla, dried fruits, grilled yellow pepper and nutmeg flavors. Finishes with a long, exotic blend of spices, creamy vanilla, and hot pink peppercorns. A delicious and veryflavorful reposado.   

Semental Añejo (94 Points/ Gold Medal ~ Exceptional): Brilliant amber color. Grilled pineapple, creamy white chocolate, floral honey, and delicate herb and spice aromas follow through to a silky, buoyant entry leads and a dry-yet-fruity medium-full body with accents of roasted yellow pepper, sandalwood, and exotic peppercorns. Finishes with a long delicious fade of crème Anglaise, baking spices, and cigar box. A lively and flavorful Añejo that artfully balances fruity agave and spicy, vanilla kissed oak.

Pura Vida Añejo: How Sweet She Is!

Of course I want to like PuraVida, with it's Texican Rock 'n' Roll mystique and my guitar-hero Billy Gibbons as its figurehead. But there's hype and there's taste. Let's get down to the reality of this juice and see if it's a Lone Star Legend or a Tall Texas Tale. 

Tejana Mama!

I've always been leary of triple-distilled tequila. It's never been my favorite. Why? Because to me 3D often tastes overly sanitized; smoothed-out; homogenized. I feel - and I am by no means alone - it removes some of the agave color and character from the juice. After all, what are we making here? Vodka? So when I saw that the Pura Vida "Silver"/blanco, and "Gold"/reposado, are triple distilled, I have to admit it gave me pause. As it turns out, in only one case did this prove to be any issue at all. 

Pura Vida Tequila's line-up of the three expressions is the story of "Good, Better, Best."

The Good - Gold: This one pretty much validates why I'm not a huge fan of triple-distilled. It's a very nice mixing tequila, and even as a sipper I'm sure many will find it quite pleasing. With the blanco's bold punch of agave (see below) I expected more from the reposado. Here are my tasting notes: Smooth and lightly sweet but somewhat meek. Cinamon, pear, a bit of vanilla, hint of wood, light mouth feel, not enough agave. Mellow. Three Pencas. 

The Better - Silver: My triple-distilled worries dissolved when I tasted PV's blanco tequila. After a week or so of decanting, I determined that the PV Silver is great on rocks, with it's clean, peppery profile. Here are my tasting notes: Herbs, white and black pepper, agave, anise seed, mint, licorice, lemon-zest, green-pepper chili-pepper, medium heat, a little bite. Overall medium bodied with warm finish. Good pop of agave. (One wonders how good this blanco would be if twice-distilled) Four Pencas. 

The BEST! - Añejo:

And what do you know, the DOUBLE DISTILLED añejo is hands-down my favorite of the three, and one of the best añejos I've tried in recent memory. Aged in spent bourbon barrels, PuraVida añejo brings to fruition the promise of an artisan-crafted highland tequila. I'm not a big añejo guy, as most people know, but I could sip this juice all night long. Here are my notes:  Coffee, molasses, caramel, vanilla, cola-nut, toasted almonds, burnt sugar, wood, smoke, and bourbon - but thankfully not overly bourbon-y. Plenty of agave left to please a guy like me. Great balance. Borders on being too sweet, but does not cross that border (pun intended). The  añejo is la crema de PuraVida, with a TASTE AS BIG AS TEXAS! Five Pencas.

Pale Rider's buddy, The Tequila Whisperer, concurs! Here's his review:

The anejo was where this brand (and NOM 1414) really shines.  There is a lush and wonderfully balanced essence in the anejo which brings forth baskets of fruit, herbs, vanilla and even traces of coffee!  This fruity and grassy herbaceous mix is a complete satisfaction event, and the price (around $40) makes this anejo a must-have in your collection.  Nice work, Pura Vida!


** He said, "lush!"

Drive...

Let's fly!

A music buddy of mine once said to me, years ago, "Whiskey sedates you; tequila DRIVES you." I agree. I like whiskey, especially Irish whiskey for it's medicinal properties, and the fact that it does, indeed, relax me. Barleycorn calms me. But tequila is a pick-me-up. It energizes me.

I tried Absinthe back in the day - lots of it - and it does this thing where you get in to this trippy ultra-clarity state. Heightened senses and all. I can see why artists got all creative while under the spell of the Green Fairy. But I hated the taste of it. Tequila does a lot of the same for me, while giving me a warm happy buzz, and I LOVE the taste of it. I'm under the spell of the Blue Agave. Love love love love. Me and my Muse Agave? True LOVE!

Checking in to Hotel California.

My new discovery! Found this at a weird little store that had virtually no tequila at all except for this one. They had all three expressions of this new-to-me juice from Highland NOM 1529. I thought to myself, "Self, this stuff could be really bad, but I always loved the song, so I'll give the blanco a whirl." Guess what? I LIKE it! It's good! (Turns out they even have a couple medals to prove it!)

It has all the sweet vanilla and spice that I enjoy in a good highland blanco. Hotel Cali is smooth with virtually no alcohol burn. And like that famous Eagles song, it takes you on a trippy ride down the desert highway at night.

Warm smell of agave...

"There she stood in the doorway. I heard the mission bell. And I was thinkin' to myself this could be Heaven or this could be Hell...."

Website: http://tequilahotelcalifornia.com/

Press Release: http://www.tequilatown.net/news/hotel-california-tequila-launches-in-us/

Review: http://thecritico.net/hotel-california-tequila/

THE BLANCO: It is clear to see that Hotel California began with a high quality Blanco. In the aroma the Blanco had strong notes of sweet cooked agave that was also noted in the Reposado & Anejo. Visually the Blanco has excellent clarity and a very good body, the taste was well balanced with notes of cooked agave, with a light spicy-peppery warm finish. The Alcohol content was stronger in the aroma but not in the taste or finish.
Hotel California Blanco Tequila: RATED 90 Points

Tequila Don Diego Santa Añejo - rich and chocolaty!

From For Tequila Lovers.com

Skinny bottle, fat taste!

In 1943, the Santa family established a small tequila distillery in Guadalajara, Mexico. Since then this is where Tequila Don Diego Santa is produced, using a multiple distillation process and small batch pot distillation. The family grows their agaves at higher than normal altitudes for 8-10 years, until they acquire the desirable sugar that allows for maximum fermentation by natural yeasts that come from the same fields where the agave plants are grown. After harvesting and cooking the agaves, the nectar is then extracted and double distilled for absolute purity by slowly cooking the Blue Agave in small batches, one small batch at a time, in stainless steel pots. This is without question a more expensive and time consuming process, but the payoff is worth it...a truly wonderful tequila that is the spirit of Mexico. Don Diego Santa Anejo is aged fora minimum of twelve months and is blended with tequilas aged far longer in American Oak barrels. The final blend averages at least 18 months of aging. It is then bottled at 40%ABV and is certified as Kosher.

  Buy me!

TASTING NOTES - THE BEVERAGE TASTING INSTITUTE/ TASTINGS.COM

Brilliant old gold color. Vibrant roasted pecan pie, dark chocolate, baked fig and peppery spice aromas follow though on a round, oily entry to a dryish medium body with prominent cocoa and roasted nut elements supported by creamy vanilla and pepper. Finishes with pleasant cigar box, cola nut, and peppery spice fade. A nutty añejo treat.

Vida-Rita!

Livin' la Pura Vida!

Kudos for Corralejo!

Going back a few years, one of my first favorite "every day" tequilas was Corralejo reposado. I loved to mix margaritas with it, and I also loved it straight. Not the blanco, not the añejo; the repo in the tall blue bottle. Of course over the last few years I have found better, more "boutique" tequilas. Corralejo is mass-produced. I get that. In Mexico it's everywhere, at $11 a bottle. But around here (in New England), it has been mis-categorized as a "top-shelf" tequila, and it's overpriced. So instead of being $20 or $25 per bottle, it's nearly $40. So I don't buy it as a rule. But you know what? Just bought my first bottle of Corralejo repo in a couple years (paid $37 -ouch!), and here's the deal: I still REALLY like it. If it was $20 I'd never run out of it. Corralejo, mi corazón.

Cocktail Hour! The Silverano, a summer sipper.

It's only April and it's already hot. I was planning to publish this recipe later, but why wait?

First, gotta give credit where it's due. This drink is based largely on one called The Gibbons, designed by my man The Rev. Willie G of ZZ Top. I mean, I've been stealing his guitar licks my whole life, so why should this be any different?


El Gibbons: Engine-Coolant For Your Soul, Supercharged!

Secondly, why the name "Silverano," Pale Rider? It's the joining of the word silver, from the color of the drink, to the Spanish word "verano," which means summer. This baby is designed to be a refreshing summer coolerator (with a bite).

Start with a great blanco tequila. May I suggest one of my current favorites: Pura Vida or Siembra Azul. Pour a fat shot of it over lots of spring-water ice. Add in a couple ounces of Polar Lime Seltzer (or any other lime-tinged sparkling water), and here's the kicker: Drop in a ring or two of sliced jalapeño - you know, the ones that come in a jar. Pale Rider actually also adds-in a couple drops of the jal-juice from the jar. You may ask, "Why would I want a hot-spicy taste in my cooling cocktail?" And I'd reply, "Go ask the Mexicans. They live in the hottest climate in the western hemisphere, and eat blazingly spicy food every day," It's apparently an inverse theory; eating hot food makes the weather seem cooler to the body. I know from life-long personal experience, it works!

That being said, stir it all up real good, add a lime wedge to the edge and you're ready to enjoy a killin' coolin' cocktail - with a kick! The Silverano!

VARIATION: The SILVERANJO!
As above but use Orange Seltzer instead of the lime, and garnish the drink with an orange wheel.

Please Stand By....

Too busy to blog. While you wait, breathlessly no doubt, for my next pearls of blogdom, please enjoy Radio Pura Vida!

http://www.rfcmedia.com/radiopuravidaplayer.html

Pura Vida Power Ballad - Big Tejano Tequila is Ready to Rock!

Pearly and Purely - The Reverend Willie G with a bottle of the "good life." Have Mercy!

Anybody who knows me knows I love three things: Twang, Texas, and Tequila. They know that I have been looking for a boutique tequila brand to get behind; to sing the praises of; to evangelize; to totally rock out for! Well, along comes a new brand that brings together all my favorite things: Pura Vida (NOM 1414) 100% agave tequila - Born in Los Altos, Raised in South Texas, and Infused with the Spirit of Rock and Roll.

"Pura Vida" loosely translated, means "The Good Life." If there was ever a brand-image that hits a big power-chord with me, this is it. For starters, the label is partly owned by my all-time Texas guitar-hero, Billy Gibbons. I grew up idolizing his playing, digging his baddass style, and trying to steal every one of his licks! (You can still hear his influence in my playing). For me, ZZ Top didn't just play low-down Texas boogie, they exuded Texas cool. They WERE Texas! It's about big hats, big beards, loud guitars, loud clothes, hot girls and hot-rods. Few Power Trios have amped-up the Texican blues more mightily than that Little Ol' Band From Texas.

Tequila Pura Vida launched in 2011, not surprisingly with a handful of big fiestas and rock-shows. Manufactured at Highland NOM 1414, PV is a partnership between Texas businessman Stewart "El Guapo" Skloss, and Mexico's Viviano famly, who are fourth-generation agaveros. It is well-known that Feliciano Viviano serenades the distilling juice with music from a concert-hall sound-system. Appropriatey, Pura Vida is the first and only liquor company with its own radio station, Radio Pura Vida. Señor Gibbons himself has been the Blues-Man Ambassador of the label, front and center. The Rev has been workin' the room!

So the buzz has been full-throttle. Is this really "The World's Best Damn Tequila?" There have been some heavily hyped-tequilas that do not live up to the noise. Naturally, I am praying that I love this juice! Stay tuned to Radio Rancho Tequila for my review!

Coming Soon to a Rancho Review Near You...

Tequila PuraVida - Born in Mexico, Raised in Texas, and flavored with a touch of Rock 'n' Roll

Pura Vida - invested in and endorsed by my favorite Texas guitarist of all, Señor Billy F. Gibbons.

Soup of The Day!

How about some agave salad with that?

Dia de Margarita!

Hi, I'm Ginger, but you can call me Rita!

What do you know? Today is National Margarita Day! Well, here on the Rancho it's always a good day for a 'Rita. So in honor of the, um, "holiday," I guess I better put a recipe up, bloggy-style.

Give my Polar Gingerita a try-- it's a combination of reposado, diet ginger ale, and lime juice. Cheers!

Polar Gingerita:
2 oz Reposado Tequila (Suggested: Camarena, Espolón, Corralejo)
4 oz Polar Diet Ginger Ale
...1/2 oz freshly squeezed Lime Juice
Shake and pour ingredients into an ice-filled highball glass. Garnish with a lime or lemon wheel.


It's also my wife's birthday, but her name isn't Rita.

I'll drink a margarita to her, ANY day!

Agave Newbie?

Best entry-level tequila for the rookie: Familia Camarena Reposado. It's real easy and smooth on the palette, with that Highland sweetness and spice. Sip it neat or use it as an excellent mixer. And the price, she is nice...

Best first tequila for the whiskey-lover: Don Julio 70. The more I drink this, the more I appreciate it's "whiskey-ness." I do love the taste of American Oak. It will remind one of a nice aged bourbon but without bourbon's overly sweet taste or it's burn.

2011 Tequila Trilogy Pt. 3, Añejo and Extra Añejo

DJ 70, Claro Que Sí!

The hard part of committing to a three-part blog is that you actually have to write all three parts. And who has the time to do that these days? Not me! So without further ado, here's part three, amigos: Añejos.

I have tried Partida Añejo before, but not in recent memory. Why? Because at $65 it's at the higher-end of my budget. I was lucky enough to get this bottle for $33. As always, Partida comes through smooth and full-bodied. Its multitude of flavors - agave, citrus, vanilla, smoke and wood - are balanced to perfection. I give Partida an extra point for having perhaps the most beautiful golden-amber color I have ever seen. It literally looks like honey in the bottle. 4.5 Pencas!
Partida Tequila Añejo, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award-Winner

Germán Gonzales is back on the list with his exquisite Tequila Uno T-1 Añejo Estelár. Words that spring to mind when I taste this tequila are, "chocolate," "coffee," "brandy," and "almond." Apparently, I think of this as an after-dinner treat. It really does remind me of a nicely-aged scotch, which is appropriate because Estelár spends up to two years in scotch barrels. Germán's masterful creation is a true sipper, and one to be cherished. This beautiful bronze tequila comes in a classy carafe-style decanter. The name says it all: Stellar! Five Pencas!
T1 Estelár, a 2011 Tequila Whisperer favorite.

Don Julio 70 Añejo Claro is the new limited-edition tequila, released to commemorate the 70th anniversary of DJ's first distillery. It showed-up recently at the local bar where I work as the house sound-guy. The bar has nothing much to speak-of in terms of tequila, so I had been encouraging the owner to stock a bottle or two of good stuff for me. Then in November, it just so happened that his local liquor rep gave him this bottle of DJ70 for free. Like any good business man, the bar-owner immediately started selling the free tequila to me for $7 a shot. Like Maestro Dobel, this is one of these new "blanco" añejos, where the color has been filtered out. It confuses the brain, because you get this very oaky, brandy or whiskey-like taste from a clear liquor. Imagine your favorite red-wine with all the color removed. The DJ70 goes down WAY too easily, that's for sure! My knock on it is that it's overly smoothed out and woodified, lacking any real agave punch. Kind of a mind-freak. Four Pencas!
Don Julio 70 Añejo Claro, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award Winner

Since we are speaking of the famous highland brand, I have worshipped Don Julio 1942 from afar for a long time now. Drinking it has simply been beyond my wildest price-range. Finally, in 2011 I had my chance to get this heralded juice on to my palette. The wife and I were at a Mexican restaurant where DJ42 was $22 per shot, which is certainly not cheap, but about $10 less than any other place I've seen it. Was it worth it? Oh, yes it was! Smoky notes of caramel, vanilla, brown sugar and pear play across the tongue, with the smoothest finish imaginable. Absolute velvet in a glass!
Five Pencas!
Don Julio 1942 Añejo, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award Winner

Kah, Kah, Kah. What can I say about Kah Day of the Dead Añejo? It comes in a killer hand-painted black skull-bottle, and that's cool. The juice inside, while having some charm, lacks depth or bigness. I will agree with Tequila Whisperer that Kah añejo is "grassy" in a nice way. Ultimately, the best thing about "Kah-ñejo" is its pretty (scary) face. Three Pencas.
Kah review on Tequila.net

In the "Never Judge a Book by it's Cover" category, Caballo Estrella showed up in my local store in 2011 sorta looking like something the cat dragged in. Dirt-cheap and on a low shelf, I initially got the impression that this was a well-brand Cuervo pretender. All three expressions are $19.99. The bottle looks cheap, but because it says %100 Agave on the label, I decided to do a little Googling. I couldn't find any reviews, and their web-site was lame, so I passed Caballo by. Then, much to my shock and awe, the añejo showed up on Tequila.net's best of 2011. Huh! I wasted no time getting over to the store and plunking down my Andrew Jackson. The stuff is really not terrible! To me, it tastes a little processed, or flavored, maybe. Could it be artificially colored? It's a blend of Highland and Lowland agave, so perhaps that's what I'm tasting. I would not hesitate to use it in a cocktail, or even shoot it, old-school. For $20, this horse is a winner! 3.5 Pencas.
Caballo Estrella Añejo, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award-Winner


La Partida de Partida

Finally, I will remember 2011 as the year when high-end tequila bars finally hit Boston. At one of them, the excellent Papagayo, I tasted what I consider the finest tequila I have had so-far; the sublime Partida Elegante Extra Añejo. It reminded me of the best spirit I've ever had the good fortune to drink, Cognac Louis VIII de Rémy Martin. Elegante, el mejor de todo! Five Pencas AND the Piña!

Let's see what 2012 has in store! Salúd!

Pale Rider, out.

Año de Agave, 2011 Tequila Highlights, Parte Dos

Part 2) Reposados:

Interestingly, looking back on 2011, I did not explore much new territory in the world of reposado tequila. I enjoyed plenty of old stand-byes, like El Tesoro, Corralejo and 7 Leguas. But overall it was a year of blancos and añejos.


Maestro Dobél: Multiple-personality disorder in a bottle?

It's a bit hard to believe but it looks like I only have four notable repos to talk about. The first is the outstanding Siembra Azúl, a beautiful Highland offering that is truly top-shelf. Well, in terms of taste, that is; I have joked numerous times about how the screw-top generic bottle and labeling belie the wonderful juice inside. S. A. is a soft, sweet and silky-smooth tequila, with just enough wood mellowing to create a perfect balance of agave and oak (and when I say perfect, in my book that's an 80/20 ratio). It's a classy and refined spirit. Now they should make a bottle to match. See my previous review here. 4.5 Pencas!
Siembra Azul Reposado, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award Winner.

Next on the list would be Maestro Dobél, the so-called "Diamond" tequila. Despite looking like a blanco, it is a blend of reposados and añejos that has been filtered to remove the coloring. The result is a diamond-clear spirit. Honestly, I'm not sure why they are removing the color. I wonder if it's a marketing device to attract the large segment of Patrón Silver drinkers, who may be of the mindset that to be good, the juice needs to be clear. In this case the clear tequila has the benefit of the woody mellowing and flavorful overtones of hand-crafted and well-rested tequila. Don't get me wrong, Dobél is a nice sipper with a delectably rich taste, but at it's original price of $75, I would never have touched it. A big part of what you're paying for here is the luxruy packaging. There has been one last lonely bottle left on the shelf of my local store for like, a year. So when they lowered it to a blowout of $35, I seized my opportunity. I like it, it's not my favorite, but if you can get it for under $50, it's a worthy addition to your tequila bar. Extra points for bottle design - muy elegante. 3.5 Pencas!


"Don't open that bottle! You'll let out the....ooh, too late!"

Then there is the little devil, Chamucos. I was attracted by the funky label with the folkloric, hand-drawn figure of El Chamuco. In Spanish it means "boogie man." I went to great lengths to get this hard-to-come-by bottle. I ended up with a NOM 1558 product. Apparently Chamucos had had a hard-time finding a permanent distillery. I notice that reviews of the 1558 juice tend to run much more favorable than those of the product from the previous distillery. When I first cracked this open, it did not immediately impress. "Firewater," thought I. However, I let it decant for a couple of weeks and went back to it. You have to do that sometimes. It was surprisingly much better the second time, and even better the time after that, sort of like, well, you know... Chamook has a demonic bite with an herbal, more pungunt/punchy taste than many. Finishes with a blanco-like burn. It's a good, ol' fashioned shooter! Party Juice! Fiesta Demonica! But what else would you expect from a tequila with a name like Chamucos? Three Pencas!

The caboose of my 2011 Repo train is Familia Camrena reposado. This bottle, like the blanco, sells for around $21. There's a big push on to get Camarena in your face. The stores have big display boxes and posters, featuring the blanco and repo side-by-side, both at the same low price. Whereas the blanco is thin and sort of just, "meh," this spunky little repo has a nice agave pop, coated in the spicy sizzle of cinnamon and the sweet notes of vanilla. It's a surprisingly bright, bold beverage, with plenty of evidence of it's highland upbringing. This may be the perfect entry-level tequila for Noobs. Cama-repo is my new go-to for maragritas, because it both stands-up and blends really decently. And yes, I would - and DO - sip this tequila. El priceo es niceo! Three Pencas!
Camarena Reposado, Tequila.net Best of 2011 Award-Winner.

Stay tuned for part 3, Añejos!