Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] You guys know I'm a tequila guy, so what the hell am I doing with a bottle of Mexican whiskey? Well, when I heard how Ulta Mexican whiskey was being made, I knew I wanted to try this one. This definitely isn't my normal review, but there are so many connections to the agave world that this bottle really caught my attention. Now, earlier I poured this in the glass. I wanted to let it open up since it was a fresh pour. So we're going to let it rest here a little bit. And let's talk about this actual whiskey. Ulta is produced entirely in Mexico, in Patascaro, Michoacan, at more than 7,000ft above sea level. And one of the first things that I really thought was cool is it's made mostly by a woman production team. The mash bill is 80% Mexican mezillo, basically Mexican heritage corn, and 20% malted barley. But here's where it gets really interesting. For an agave guy like me, the barley is actually smoked using agave. So before the whiskey ever sees a barrel, agave is already part of its production story. After fermentation, Ulta is distilled in stainless steel pot stills. And they're doing something else that I found fascinating. The distillate isn't cooled down before barreling. It actually goes into the barrel warm. From there, Ulta spends three years aging in American oak X tequila barrels sourced from a Mexican tequila producer. I know what you're going to ask Brad. Whose tequila barrels are they? Well, trust me, I ask, but at the producer's request, we're not disclosing the name right now. So there's going to have to be a little mystery surrounding these barrels. So think about what we got going on here. Mexican heritage corn, agave, smoked malted barley, and then three years interacting with oak that previously held tequila. Mexico is woven into almost every step of this whiskey. Ulta is non chill filtered, allowing all of those natural occurring oils and flavor compounds to remain in the whiskey through bottling rather than filtering some of that character away. Even the packaging continues through the story because these labels are made with agave paper, a nod to agave spirits to help keep Mexican distilling on an international stage and help create the opportunity for Mexican whiskey like Ulta to exist today. Real quick, before we jump into the tasting, if you love learning about tequila and agave spirits, make sure you check out the Tequila Report. It's a great resource for tequila news, education brands, production information, and really what's happening in the tequila world. Proud to be A contributor to the Tequila Report. So go check it out. You can get it for free at the tequila report.com subscribe. So go there and get it right away. All right. This has been in the glass for a while. Let's jump on the nose of this, and let's see what this tequila guy can pick up in a whiskey. Okay. I get like, a really nice oaky note. I get a, like that musty barrel smell that we talk about. I get a little bit of like a caramel, but also a little bit of like, the smell of paper. There's a. Just a hint of like, sweet cooked corn as well. I'd love to tell you that I can pick up barley, but I don't know what barley smells like on its own. I know, like, when I smell an American whiskey, I get this deep, rich note. And I kind of get that here, but a little bit lighter than maybe, say, a Maker's bar. I guess you could say toasted grain. There's maybe a little hint of smoke, too. Okay, let's taste it.
[00:02:56] There's a nice sweetness, almost like a sweet corn type taste, or toasted like grain. There's vanilla, caramel, little bit of that oak. There is a little bit of a smokiness to it as well. That's. That's pretty interesting. Let's taste it again. In my head, I. I really want to taste tequila knowing that this was once in a tequila barrel. There is an agave sweetness to it, but that could just be the corn. Honestly, this is a really nice whiskey. I could definitely sip on this. It's light. It's not like a real heavy American whiskey. This is really easy to drink and very. Almost more refreshing than grabbing a heavy whiskey and sipping on it like a. Like a bourbon of some kind. The finish, it's kind of long. There's like a nice sweetness there. It just kind of hangs on. And you definitely pick up more of that corn and musty barrel note in the finish. I want to say thanks to Celine Nestor, the CEO and founder, for sending me this bottle and letting me try it. I'm really excited to get to try this. And it is simply different that comes from Mexico. And that's really why I wanted to talk about. I spend so much time traveling around Mexico learning about tequila and agave spirits that sometimes I forget how interesting distillation is and what's happening in Mexico outside of tequila and mezcal. Mexican whiskey is something I'm learning about, but I'm definitely not going to sit here and pretend that I'M suddenly a whiskey expert because I'm not at all. But I do know what I like and I know production methods fascinate me. And somebody is making something with Mexican corn, agave, smoked barley, and distilling it and say in the still pots and then putting the distillate warm into ex tequila barrels for three years and doing the entire thing in Mexico. You better believe I'm paying attention to it. And and this bottle does taste as interesting as the story behind it. I might have to make a little more room for some Mexican whiskey on this tequila channel. If you've had this whiskey, drop me a comment, let me know what your thoughts are. And if you would dive into Mexican whiskeys, is it something that you would be interested in as well? Cheers. Have a great night.
