Casamigos is a Hollywood favorite because to its co-founder George Clooney, but it has a lot of substance to go along with its style. Casamigos is a 100% agave tequila manufactured in the Jalisco highlands. It’s one of the smoothest and most natural-tasting tequilas on our list. Clooney and Rande Gerber, the company’s co-founder, said they aimed to create, “The best-tasting, smoothest tequila that didn’t require the addition of salt or lime.”
Nothing beats a good cocktail, whether you’re at an A-list after-party or just relaxing at home “For a refreshing, celeb-approved drink, try “casamigos and soda.” Each batch is distilled in stainless steel barrels for at least two months, yielding a pleasant blend of sweet agave, mild citrus, and a hint of vanilla.
Is Casamigos made with blue agave?
Our ultra-premium tequilas are created from the best hand-selected 100% Blue Weber agaves grown in the rich red clay soil and cool temperature of Jalisco, Mexico’s Highlands. Casamigos Mezcal is handcrafted and made from 100 percent Espadn agaves in Santiago Matatlán, Oaxaca, Mexico.
Is all tequila 100 percent agave?
Not all mezcal is tequila, and not all tequila is mezcal. Tequila can only be manufactured from agave tequilana (blue agave), but mezcal can be made from over 30 different agave species (AKA maguey). (Agave espading is used to make the majority of mezcals.)
Agave is not a cactus.
Agave is a succulent, not a cactus. Tequila and cacti have nothing to do with each other. Unless you’re sitting next to one, sipping a joven, of course. The agave plant is a succulent that grows in the desert.
Blue agave typically takes eight years to mature.
Agave is difficult to grow, to say the least. The correct desert conditions are required, and even then, most blue agave takes eight years to mature. And that’s only to get you to the harvesting stage. Add some more time to your tequila if you want it to age.
The blue agave plant only has one life to give.
The fact that blue agave is a one-time use plant doesn’t help efficiency. When the agave plants are ready to be harvested, their pias or hearts are ripped out. They’re called that because they end up looking like pineapples. These are the portions of the plant that will be cooked, crushed, and fermented to make tequila.
Tequila is legally required to be only 51% blue agave.
Tequila is created from blue agave, but it does not have to be made entirely from this plant. Many tequilas claim to be made entirely of blue agave, while the legal requirement is 51 percent. The balance of the bottle can be filled with a neutral spirit prepared from cane sugar juice, resulting in a “mixto” tequila. These are, unsurprisingly, believed to be of poorer grade.
Your tequila bottle should not have a worm in it.
There will be no worms in the tequila, FYI. The link between tequila and worms is (possibly) due to the fact that maguey plants are frequently chewed on by “gusano de maguey,” small larvae that, if not interrupted, would develop into a mariposa, a butterfly-like creature. It’s mezcal, not tequila, when they’re inserted into liquor bottles as larvae. So, if there’s a worm in your tequila, don’t drink it. Who knows what else is wrong in the bottle if the maker got that wrong.
Young tequila is really young.
We consume a lot of tequila that is still young. And by aging standards, that’s still rather young: blanco/joven is 0 to 2 months old, reposado is 2 months to 1 year old, and aejo is 1 to 3 years old. There is, however, such a thing called “extra aejo,” which takes tequila maturation to a new level (3 years or more).
You can buy tequila that has been aged for over a decade.
Although three years may seem like a long time to age tequila, one of the oldest “extra aejos” now for sale is 11 years old and costs upwards of $1000. It’s composed entirely of organic blue agave and aged in French oak barrels. A fantastic (really fantastic) present for the tequila connoisseur in your life?
The name tequila carries legal weight around the globe.
Tequila is protected as a Mexican designation of origin in dozens of nations, similar to European Union products with protected names (e.g. Champagne and Prosciutto di Parma). That protection is built into NAFTA in the United States and Canada. So please don’t try to brew tequila in your bathtub.
The Tahona process is as crafty as it gets.
Tequila may be as artisanal as the most artisanal crafty little spirit. Even if it’s made by a major manufacturer. Tequila is manufactured by heating and crushing the gigantic pias, as you may know. The Tahona processbasically dragging a giant volcanic wheel over the cooked agave heartsis one method those pias can (and have) been crushed. Donkeys are still used in some places, according to tradition. We’re not sure anything is more artisan than using a donkey.
Is Casamigos real tequila?
The tequila brand Casamigos (loosely translated as “house of friends”) was founded by George Clooney and Rande Gerber. The agaves come from Jalisco’s Highlands, and the reposado is matured for seven months in refurbished whiskey barrels before being bottled at 80 proof.
What is better Casamigos or patron?
Casamigos is a superior tequila than Patron Silver because it is more flavorful and easy to drink. I liked the sweet aromas of cooked agave combined with the delicate mint and vanilla notes. Patron, on the other hand, lacks depth and complexity, making it a dull drink.
What makes Casamigos different?
In a 2018 interview, Gerber defined the ideal formula as follows: “We wanted one that didn’t burn going down, was incredibly smooth, and had the correct flavor profile.” We wanted something we didn’t have to mix we usually drink it straight or on the rocks something we could drink all day and not wake up drunk.”
The brand was a billion-dollar “accident.
The search lasted nearly two years, during which time the pair tried 700 different recipes. The tequila was a hit with all their friends, even though they never intended to develop a brand “Casamigos actually started by accident as far as a corporation,” Gerber later remarked Clooney and Gerber quickly began ordering over 1,000 bottles from their producer each year. The couple was advised that if they wanted to keep buying bottles, they needed to obtain a license.
Clooney and Gerber took the plunge and launched the business commercially in 2013 with the support of their property development acquaintance Mike Meldman. Casamigos was purchased by Diageo for $1 billion four years later ($700 million up front and $300 million eventually, depending on sales success). Clooney and Gerber continue to work for the company.
Casamigos: the “house of friends.
The land on which Clooney and Gerber built their Mexico residences is known as Casamigos. Meldman owns the development, which has a moniker that loosely translates to “home of friends.”
Casamigos tequila takes things slow.
Casamigos makes tequila in three different styles: blanco, reposado, and aejo. Each is produced entirely of Blue Weber agave that is between seven and nine years old at the time of harvest. The agave pias are then roasted for 72 hours in brick ovens before fermenting for 80 hours (more than double the industry average). After that, the tequila is aged in casks for two months for blanco, seven months for reposado, and 14 months for aejo.
Tequila isn’t the only drink on the menu.
Casamigos added a young mezcal to its lineup in 2018. Apart from being Casamigos’ only non-tequila product, the mezcal is also the company’s only non-clear glass release. The matte-black design was created by Gerber, and each bottle is polished with a specific rubbing technique to make it one-of-a-kind.
Casamigos is not just celebrity hype.
Casamigos’ spirits have won multiple gold medals at spirits competitions since their launch, including the Los Angeles International Spirits Competition, the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, the New York World Wine & Spirits Competition, and the Spirits of Mexico Tasting Competition.
“Drink Casamigos and wake up with George Clooney.
Clooney and Gerber returned to Gerber’s residence after a night of heavy tequila consumption, where Clooney stayed in a guest room for the night. He awoke to discover Cindy Crawford (Gerber’s wife) in bed with him a few hours later. Crawford mistook the stacked heap on the bed for Gerber, while Clooney assumed he’d slipped into the master bedroom by accident after one too many drinks.
“In a 2019 interview, Gerber stated, “Needless to say, we all laughed about it.” “‘Drink Casamigos and wake up with Cindy Crawford,’ became our first commercial. ‘Drink Casamigos and wake up with George Clooney,’ as Cindy loves to joke.”
What is the difference between agave and tequila?
The word mezcal comes from the Nahuatl word for roasted agave, which is the most important plant in the manufacturing of the liquor. The pia, a rounded stem that resembles a pineapple, is used to manufacture mezcal. While its towering, spiky green leaves are an iconic symbol of mezcal, it is the pia, the rounded stem that resembles a pineapple, that is used to make the spirit.
Agave pia is boiled after harvesting to soften the fibers and convert the carbohydrates into sugar. Although the agave is traditionally roasted, some modern manufacturers prefer to steam it to reduce the smoky flavor of the finished alcohol.
Both mezcal and Tequila are made from agave, so what’s the difference between them? Basically, Tequila is a type of mezcal. While mezcal can be produced from up to 50 species of the agave plant, Tequila can be made from just one: agave tequilana Weber, or Weber blue agave. Additionally, agave that’s earmarked for Tequila is steamed in ovens, while the plant is often roasted in underground pits for mezcal, which can provide a distinctive smoky note.
After that, the cooked plant is crushed. Crushing the agaves is traditionally done with a tahona, a massive stone wheel pulled by a donkey or mule. This technique has been industrialized by a growing number of distilleries, making it less romantic but surely more efficient. Smaller producers may break the cooked pias with a mallet or machete.
The resulting pulp is fermented and subsequently distilled into mezcal, regardless of the compression process used. Only a limited percentage of mezcals are matured in barrels.
What is the significance of agave? Take a look at a mezcal bottle’s label. Any other spirit category can’t compete with the depth of information. The agave type (or kinds) used to manufacture the mezcal, as well as the state or location where the agave was cultivated, are commonly included alongside the brand and the name of the mezcalero who makes the spirit. It’s simple to draw comparisons between wine grapes and regions.
Is Cuervo Gold 100 agave?
This mass-market mixto tequila, often known as Cuervo Gold, is often the first tequila many people try and is the world’s best-selling tequila. This mixto tequila is a mix of blanco and reposado tequilas, and it isn’t entirely made of agave.