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Chilled recently posed a few tequila questions to members of the Chilled Ambassadors Network, our community of working bartenders and beverage professionals.<\/p>\n
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We wanted to know which smaller and craft-minded tequila brands were earning their attention and, for a little fun, which celebrity-backed bottles had genuinely surprised them.<\/p>\n
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Not surprisingly, bartenders appear to be paying close attention to what\u2019s happening inside the bottle.<\/p>\n
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When Ambassadors started naming their favorites, brands including La Gritona, G4, ArteNOM, Fortaleza, Volans, Cascahu\u00edn, Cambio, and relative newcomer Zumbador entered the conversation.<\/p>\n
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Rather than simply naming bottles, however, respondents talked about how those tequilas were made.<\/p>\n
One bartender praised La Gritona, G4, ArteNOM, Fortaleza, and Volans while specifically pointing to their production and transparency.<\/p>\n
Another singled out Cambio and immediately dove into fermentation and barrel treatment, noting its use of wine yeast and Chardonnay barrels.<\/p>\n
That level of detail says something about where tequila culture is headed behind the bar. Here are more of the results we discovered.<\/p>\n
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Tequila has experienced an extraordinary transformation in the United States. What was once primarily associated with shots and Margaritas has developed into a premium spirits category where drinkers increasingly discuss agave provenance, fermentation, distillation methods, barrel treatment, and production transparency.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s one reason brands such as Fortaleza, G4 and La Gritona have developed such passionate followings among spirits professionals. The appeal isn\u2019t necessarily flashy packaging or a celebrity name. It\u2019s often the opportunity to taste the decisions made during production.<\/p>\n
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Perhaps the most revealing response in the Chilled conversation came from a bartender who nominated Cambio.<\/p>\n
Rather than praising the tequila simply for tasting good, he immediately explained why he found it interesting:<\/strong> wine yeast, wood fermentation and wine barrels.<\/p>\n And it points toward an important distinction in the way bartenders talk about \u201ccraft.\u201d Traditional doesn\u2019t necessarily mean good, just as unconventional doesn\u2019t necessarily mean bad. What appears to intrigue these bartenders is intentionality \u2014 producers making deliberate choices that result in something distinctive in the glass.<\/p>\n Other Ambassadors mentioned G4 and Cascahu\u00edn, while newer names such as Zumbador also entered the discussion. One bartender enthusiastically recommended Zumbador\u2019s high-proof Blanco after recently encountering the brand, another indication that bartenders are still actively hunting for bottles beyond the familiar back-bar staples.<\/p>\n Then we asked a different question:<\/strong> Are there any celebrity tequila brands that surprised you by actually being good?<\/p>\n This is where things got interesting.<\/p>\n C\u00f3digo 1530 ran away with the informal poll, receiving the most votes.<\/p>\n C\u00f3digo 1530 counts country star George Strait among its founders, but the tequila\u2019s story extends beyond its celebrity association. The brand says its tequila is produced in Amatit\u00e1n, Jalisco, and traces its production to a local distilling tradition that predates the modern brand. Its aged expressions use French white oak wine barrels, while its Rosa rests for a month in uncharred Cabernet barrels.<\/p>\n The lesson, then, isn\u2019t that bartenders reject celebrity tequila. It\u2019s that celebrity alone isn\u2019t enough to impress them.<\/p>\n For years, tequila marketing was largely about lifestyle: Mexico, sunshine, nightlife, Margaritas, luxury bottles and, eventually, famous founders.<\/p>\n That isn\u2019t disappearing. But behind the bar, another conversation is taking place.<\/p>\n Bartenders increasingly want to know where the agave came from. They want to understand how it was cooked, fermented and distilled. They\u2019re interested in barrels, proof and production decisions. And they want to know who is actually making the liquid.<\/p>\n The broader tequila industry has noticed the shift toward transparency as well. Patr\u00f3n recently made ingredient transparency a centerpiece of its marketing, citing consumer research showing strong interest in greater openness from producers.<\/p>\n And perhaps that\u2019s the most encouraging takeaway from our Ambassadors\u2019 responses: in an increasingly crowded tequila category, bartenders are still curious. They\u2019re still discovering producers. They\u2019re still debating bottles. And they\u2019re paying attention to the decisions that happen long before a tequila reaches the back bar.<\/p>\n The post What Tequilas Are Bartenders Actually Drinking? We Asked Them<\/a> appeared first on Chilled Magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Celebrity tequila gets plenty of attention. Ask working bartenders what they\u2019re actually excited to drink, though, and the conversation gets considerably more interesting. Chilled recently posed a few tequila questions to members of the Chilled Ambassadors Network, our community of working bartenders and beverage professionals. We wanted to know which smaller and craft-minded tequila brands […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12029],"tags":[13044,14119,7055,20111],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-7051717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-alcohol","tag-asked","tag-bartenders","tag-drinking","tag-tequilas"],"yoast_head":"\nBut Celebrity Tequila Isn\u2019t Automatically the Enemy<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nThe Back Bar Is Becoming More Informed<\/h3>\n
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