Patron: The Perfect Poser?

Shall we Patron-ize? (BTW: What's with the Bee? Is it saying, "Drink me for the buzz?")

Patron Patron Patron....Love it? Hate it? Over-rated? Over priced? Is it real? fake? A poser? Liquid gold or Donkey Wizz?

Many -- I'd say MOST -- tequila aficionados are staunchly anti-Patron. While I have problems with Patron in-general, I'm not as vehement. I call it "tequila with training wheels". Why? Because it's designed to be smooth and ultra-drinkable for people who don't have an experienced tequila pallette. It's like the vodka/martini people who never had a shot until Grey Goose came along (when some were drinking Stoli in the '80s). For many, Patron's the first and only pure agave tequila they've had; it's the only name they know other than Jose Cuervo.

Due to very good marketing, Patron has positioned itself as the one and only ultra-premium, and has priced itself accordingly. They're using one of the oldest marketing ploys in the world - make it expensive so people think it's the best. The strategy has worked like a charm. People are paying $50 per bottle and up. Is it worth it? Well in my not-so-humble opinion, no. Don't get me wrong, it's not bad tequila. In fact I like the reposado quite a bit. Many of the so-called Patron lovers have never tried the repo. They're stuck on the silver (blanco) which is ok, but there are far superior blancos out there for a lot less money. I could name half-a-dozen right now (but I won't). In fact, I have talked to Patron-izers who actually don't know about the other types of tequila (reposado, anejo, etc.) or the difference between a mixto and a 100%. They are simply happy to pay $7-a-shot for the schtuff.

The truth is that Patron is an American company, based in Las Vegas, and owned buy a guy who has been successful in the industry of hair salon products (Paul Mitchell Systems).

As far as taste, I find Patron Silver one-dimensional. It's not rich and complex, like ultra premium tequila tends to be. The bigger problem I have with it is the price. A good, I mean really good, blanco should be $10 to $20 less. For really good reposado or anejo I might spend $50. In fact, the only blanco I would ever spend upwards of $50 for would be La Fortaleza, which pisses all over Patron and then won't call Patron in the morning...or ever again, for that matter.

Here's a great review of Patron that really hits the target: Patron The Peroxide Blonde