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.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
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.
Monday, January 9, 2012
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!
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!
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