Still not one tequila drinker will tell me what's a good sipping tequila at a reasonable price? I don't want to hear how you buy a $200 bottle every two weeks. What is a good sipping tequila, Patron? I bet snobbery will label it crap.
Still not one tequila drinker will tell me what's a good sipping tequila at a reasonable price? I don't want to hear how you buy a $200 bottle every two weeks. What is a good sipping tequila, Patron? I bet snobbery will label it crap.
I worked for the CRT(Consejo Regulador de Tequila) in the 7 years I lived in Guadalajara, basically because I was the one able to read and prepare documents that were in English for export. The office is in Guadalajara. It is very unlikely that the Rock had anything to do with his Tequila in that to be called certain things, you have to have aged your tequila for a certain time. There also has to be a certain percentage of Blue Agave to alcohol ratio, there are MANY regulations to show a tequila is legit.
Reposado - 2 to 12 months
Anejo -1 to 3 years
Extra anejo - aged 3 years or more.
And several others like silver,etc.
Tequila is made from Blue Agave that comes from the town of Tequila which is a short drive from Guadalajara. Unlike many things in Mexican government, tequila is such a valuable export that the government is very strict in that they seal the oak barrels and regulators make sure the seal is not broken for 3 years if you want to claim you are selling extra anejo they will check. There are some cheap knock off tequilas that lie, or pay someone off, in fact Blue Agave grows in China and there are many knock off tequila's from China that try to pass off as legit and those are usually the shit one's.
So the first thing you should look for as far as quality is a seal that says CRT(Consejo Regulador de Tequila) because cheap ass tequila or even pulque(an older, raw form similar to tequila) are sold and are shit. To be called Tequila, it has to come from tequila, MX just like to be called Champagne is has to come from that region of France or they'll call it "sparkling wine" or some shit and try to fool you.
So the first step in a quality tequila is that it has a CRT stamp.
The next is what you are drinking the Tequila for. If you are making margaritas you may want something different than if you want to just sip it. They add different flavors or currents just like wine. But step one is that it has a CRT stamp. I would personally avoid any celebrity tequila in that because the aging process takes so long, and the Cartels launder alot of money through tequila companies and have some influence, the celebrity almost certainly has NOTHING to do with the manufacturing of a tequila. This is dishonest which is a red flag.
But let your taste buds and flavor goals be your guide. Price does not always mean its the best quality.
