Didn't want to like you, but despite the hype, I DO! I do like you, you dangerous sunnofabitch!
I have a problem with overly-hyped tequilas that are owned by American rock-stars or businessmen who usually sell hair products or trade bonds on Wall Street. Yes, I'm talking about YOU Cabo, and especially YOU, Patrón!
I recently tried "Avión Silver," the tequila made popular on the TV show Entourage. It was pretty much what I expected; triple distilled, overly smoothed, and with that harmless flavor profile designed for people who wouldn't know a real Weber blue agave if it chased them around the yard. What's the difference between Avión and some fashionable Vodka-du-jour being posed-with by a Miami Supermodel? Nothing, that's what! It's all marketing hype. Meanwhile, the actual substance inside - the JUICE - is average at best.
With all of these prejudices in mind, today I walked in to the neighborhood BevMo store here in San Jose (where I am hanging for a few days) and proceded to hover around the well-appointed and very reasonably-priced tequila shelf. Just as I was deciding whether to get the new Don Julio 70 Joven tequila, or perhaps a bottle of Tonalá reposado, a couple of the store employees took notice of me and came over. They immediately started pitching me on this new tequila, which just coincidentally was on-sale, called "Peligroso." I know retail pretty well, and I know tequila better than both of the people at the store, and what I gathered was they were trying to "push" this new brand. They didn't know whether it was highlqands or lowlands and they kept saying something about citrus and spice and white pepper. It sounded a lot like a not-too-well-memorized "schpeel." BUT, since it was on sale for $30-something bucks and I always say everything starts with a good blanco, I bought a bottle of the blanco - sorry, I mean "Silver" - on their totally trustworthy recommendation. As I checked out, I actually said to the check-out guy, "This better be worth the hype, because I know a good blanco when I taste it."
I really did say that.
Upon returning to the bungalow I Googled "Peligroso" and found all the signs of the things I am wary of: A couple young American kids start up a tequila company in SoCal. It's rad. It's rock 'n' roll. It's surfing. It's naked girls. It's tatoos. It's party-time all-the-time, baby. It's tequila for kids with money to burn, dude! Peligroso-dangeroso tequila baby, woo-hoo! And it's a 42% alcohol/84-proof liquor, so hey, let's get wasted!
So I'm thinking, "Really? Here we go again. Give me a break. It's all about marketing and a slick web-site."
Logo, or Tramp-Stamp Tattoo?
At any rate, I wasn't going to wait one more minute to try the stuff. And as a serious tequila aficionado, I had low, low expectations.
Well, ba-low me down! It's GOOD! This Peligroso juice is good blanco. I think they got it right! They clearly went in to this knowing something about real tequila, or at least with a good pallette, and with the right attitude. Right off the bat I'll say it's a little sweet even for a highlands lover like me, but she's a spunky little blanco, with a touch of the spicy kick we like. Mostly, it's loaded, and I mean loaded with agave goodness. This tequila has flavor to spare. It tastes like someone squeezed agave nectar in to the bottle. There's a nice soft entry of caramelized agave, followed by a zesty mid-palette of hot ginger and sugar-cane, and ending with a very slight bite and alcohol burn. It's not as-if a thousand exotic chili-peppers just danced on my tongue, and there's no 'earthyness" to speak of either. I also did not get much in the way of citrus - maybe orange - even though other reviews mention it. But thank God they didn't try to remove the heart and soul of tequila like some of these other worthless posers. In other words, agave is NOT the secret ingredient in this tequila.
THEY GOT IT RIGHT! Agave is NOT the secret ingredient!
And yes, Peligroso DOES happen to be highland agave - my favorite. NOM 1107 is Tequila de Viejito, and although I've never had any of their other brands, their location is certainly good in my book. I'd say this to anyone serious enough about getting in to real tequila: If you don't like this, you don't like tequila, period. Run the other way and drink a Bombay Sapphire with Stevie Nicks. Peligroso COULD BE the real deal. I didn't taste a lot of this "white pepper" I'd been told about - but what do I know? What the hell does white-pepper taste like anyway? I certainly did get some sweet spice, like ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon, along with honey. There's a "pop" in there, to be sure. As we all know, these are the marquee flavors of the famous Los Altos piña. It's the agave we call "Highlands". And with a high alcohol content, to-boot, the burn is tolerable, even sublime. Kind of astonishing.
This blanco goes down TOO easy.
They have a ways to go to be the next Siete Leguas, but Peligroso has made a tremendous rookie effort, certainly for their blanco. I mean, "silver."
And all this is coming from a blanco lover. As I always do, I say a good blanco bodes well for the rest of the line. Speaking of which, if I am reading the lit correctly, in the making of the reposado, Peligroso uses new American oak - not cured by bourbon. I have never been a fan of bourbon-barrel flavoring in tequila or scotch (because, well, I don't like bourbon), but I'm a BIG fan of virgin oak. So if this is the case, bring on the repo!
Would need free samples, though....... :-) Hint. Hello Peligroso....
Great bottle, too! Really artful bottle designs on the three expressions.
GO DANGEROUS, OR GO HOME!
Peligroso Tequila on Facebook
Tequila Whisperer show reviews Peligroso.
