Why Isn’t Anyone Talking About This? | El Mexicano Añejo Review

[00:00:00] Most anejos get judged by their barrel notes. Vanilla, caramel, oak, cinnamon. But what if the reason that this tequila stands out has less to do with the barrel and more to do to everything that happens before it ever touched wood? Today I'm going to review El Mexicano Anejo from NAM 1588 and Arandas Jalisco. This is an added free tequila produced by the Bunuelos family, the same family responsible for Casadores decades ago. And while there are plenty of anejos on the market, this one does a few things differently. First, let's talk about the production. Everything starts with mature highland agaves grown in iron rich soil in Los Altos. That's important because highland agaves are known for producing sweeter fruit forward characteristics compared to many of the valley grown agaves. The cooking process is where things begin to separate a little bit from the crowd in the tequila world. Instead of using an aggressive high pressure cooking, El Moxicano uses a low pressure autoclave process that runs roughly 18 to 24 hours. The goal isn't speed. The goal is preserving the natural agave character while slowly converting starches into fermentable. [00:01:01] After cooking, the agave goes through a five stage roller mill extraction system. Then comes one of the most unusual parts of the entire process. They ferment this for more than seven days, and in tequila that's a long time. Many distilleries finish fermentation much quicker, but the extended fermentation allows the yeast additional time to create complex esters, flavor compounds that contribute to the fruit, floral and the layered characteristics of this tequila. And yes, this distillery famously plays classical music during fermentation in the fermentation room. Whether you're a believer in the music affecting the fermentation or not, it's certainly one of the most unique practices you'll find in tequila production. Distillation here is also different. Instead of copper stills, El Mexicano uses custom stainless steel pots designed by Leon Benuelo Sr. The idea is simple. Preserve much of the natural fruit, mineral and agave character as possible without producing additional copper influence. Then we get into aging. This Anejo spends 14 to 16 months resting roughly at 6,600ft above sea level. Elevation matters because temperature swings atmospheric conditions influence how the spirit interacts with the wood over time. The barrels are also unique. Rather than relying primarily on bourbon barrels like other anejos, El Mexicano ages their tequila in a blend of 70% new American oak and 30% new French oak. New oak is far more active than previously used barrels Meaning the tequila interacts flavor from the wood more aggressively. The American oak contributes vanilla sweetness, richness. The French oak adds structure, spice, and elegance. Even more interesting, the tequila enters the barrel at 96 proof. That helps preserve more of agave's natural compounds while creating a balanced interaction with the wood. So how does this all translate to the glass? Let's see. Let's get it in there. Just popped it. This is fresh, brand new pop. They just sent me this bottle. Cannot wait to try it. [00:02:50] I love their high proof expression. It was fantastic. So let's go. Wow. On the nose. Cooked agave, some orange, some like orchard fruit, citrus peel. A nice soft oak to it. That's really nice. Let's. Let's hit the taste of this one. Nice cooked agave. It's really floral. There's a nice orange note there into a little bit of vanilla, maybe even a little bit of roasted pineapple. There's a lot of minerality there too. And the finish is long. You got a lot of baking spices. I don't know if I want to say sweet potato is a taste I get, but sometimes the cooked agave gives me a sweet potato, roasted pineapple type flavor. I pick up this roasted pineapple, but I also in the finish get like just sweet potato and there's a little bit of just a lingering like dark chocolate bitterness. That's really good. This is. This is really nice. This is a whiskey drinker's dream. This is the next time I have a whiskey drinker over. This is what I'm going to pull out and have them taste to help convert them. If you like a tequila where the barrel doesn't completely dominate it, but it gives you all of this new oak flavor where you can taste both the American and the French oak, this is definitely one for you. And the agave is still there, so it's really cool. Let me know if you have tried any of the El Mexicano tequilas and let me know what your favorite expression is. Mine was the high proof, but today it might be the anejo Cheers.