Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Wine barrel rested Tequila. Sounds gimmicky, right? What if I told you this Anejo may be one of the most unique dessert style tequilas I've tasted this year and it's still additive free. Today we're going to dive into Don Rico Anejo and hopefully this one surprises me. All right, I haven't tasted this one yet. This just was sent to me by Don Rico. I want to say thanks for reaching out. I really look forward to tasting it for the first time in doing this review. Today, we're going to review Don Rico Anejo. Coming up, Naanth 1608 and this one double cast aging process that brings bourbon and wine together. So I'm excited to see what this one tastes like. Let's get into how this one's made because, you know, that's what matters. 100% blue Weber agave cooked in traditional stone ovens for 48 hours. It is roller mill extracted. It's open air fermentation for at least 72 hours. So they're really letting the fermentation do its job in that flavor factory and create some awesome things there. It's double distilled in stainless steel pots with copper coils. And most importantly, this is one of the brands that was certified out of the free. And here's what's interesting about this anejo. It is aged for three months in American bourbon barrels. So American oak bourbon barrels. And then it's transferred over to some fresh French oak cabernet wine barrels where it rested between 10 and 17 months. Of course, those are blended together and that's going to get us this tequila right here influenced by both wine and bourbon. So let's get this one in the glass and see what it tastes like.
[00:01:40] Okay. Nice big pour. Now look, I like a big pour in this kind of glass. A lot of people ask me why I don't use glen Karen's or CTC's. This bigger glass with a larger amount of tequila in it gives me a little bit more nose that I can pick up when I'm in the nosing process. So that's why I use this one. So let's dive right into it and let's see what we got.
[00:02:00] I get a faint amount of cooked agave and that's kind of expected in something that's been aging this long. But it is nice that that cooked agave is still there. There's a nice vanilla, a nice caramel, and a really nice like stone fruit note. I'm going to say maybe a cross between Peach and apricot. And there's also like a, like almost a dark chocolate or maybe even, maybe even like an espresso or coffee note. That oak is there. There's a little bit of a nice floral note and even a little bit of maybe red berries. Like almost like a raspberry, if you will. That's it. That's a nice note. It's very complex. Okay, let's dive into the taste.
[00:02:38] First thing I want to point out is it has a very nice mouth feel. It goes between soft when it touches your mouth and then like oils up and is rich. Very nice. A nice caramel, a nice hint of honey and vanilla. There's a good cooked agave there. You pick up plum.
[00:02:58] See what else this is. That red fruit or what I said raspberry in the nose kind of turns into raspberries and a little bit of cherry in the flavor.
[00:03:09] So the wine is really influencing this. And that cooked agave is still there. You still get that taste of tequila. That honey and that raspberry just really lights up. So the barrel influence that this is getting is different than a lot of other anejos that I have. And I guess that's a reason why it is rated on the panel on Agave matchmaker as an 86. So really nice, high rated tequila. The finish on this is nice. It's long, it's kind of spicy. But I can't really put my finger on like individual spice. I would say just, you know, baking spices. There's maybe a hint of butterscotch and a nice amount of oak. I'm really intrigued by that berry raspberry sweetness that's there. It's definitely not like a fake sweetness. It's just a nice fruity sweetness. This is, this is really good. This is a great sipping tequila, no question. Now, I gotta say that if you're one of those purists that want your tequila to just be hinted by the barrel and more agave, this one's probably not for you. There's a lot of wine influence here. There's a lot of fruity flavors that I normally pick up in a tequila, but they are very pleasant. There's a nice oak and then it goes into all the fruit, and I really love that. And when you get into some of these French barrels, these French casks, and wine casks, there are added flavors that come along with them that maybe if you're a purist, you don't like. But if you're looking for some complexity and more of a dessert on Yeho this one hits it out of the park for me. So this is very good in that aspect. When you're using barrels like this and you're going a little longer in your aging time, it is very common that you would lose that agave taste, that cooked agave taste. And they didn't do that here. It's still there. So I'm really impressed at their ability to do this. Drop a comment if you've tried. Don Rico Anejo, let me know what you think about it. If you like tequilas that are aged in French barrels, put that down in the comments as well. If you like tequila reviews and you like learning about tequila, make sure you hit that like and subscribe and share and tell your friends. Thanks for coming around tonight and watching a video and I gotta say this is probably my dessert for the evening. Cheers.
