Tequila School Graduation - I give us an A++

Yes, we survived Tequila School! Over the last 3 days we tasted a couple dozen different labels, made some wonderful new friends (even Kiki made a friend), and learned more about Tequila than we ever thought possible. There were zero casualties, and therefore I give us an A++. 

We also fell in love with the town of Tequila. This place is wicked cool. There are hardly any gringos here, tons of mexican tourists, but no foreigners. The cobble stone streets are narrow and filled with little shops. It reminds me a lot of Spain. If you dream of visiting the birthplace of Tequila, here is the beta...

The Best Of Show:

Best Tour - La Cofradia 

Forget Jose Cuervo, which is the place everyone will tell you to visit. Go to La Cofradia instead. This is by far the best. This distillery sits on the outskirts of town and is absolutely beautiful. For 100 pesos you'll get a full tour. (FYI, the tour at Cuervo is over 300 pesos.) At Cofradia you'll learn all about how Tequila is made from start to finish. You'll enjoy a full flight of their best Tequila, including the Extra Anejo. Afterwards you'll get another free glass of Anejo Tequila at their patio bar. We estimated the value of the drinks alone was over 250 pesos. 

Best Tequila tasted - La Cofradia Casa Noble

Their Blanco is super smooth. The Reposada and Anejo are tops. And the best Tequila we've ever had in our lives was their Casa Noble Extra Anejo. It's triple distilled and aged for 5 years in French Oak. It smells like candy and melts in your mouth. It's over $110 a bottle! 

Best Over-all Tequila Value

100 Anos. For what you pay, this Tequila cannot be beat.

Best Tequila Tips
Only buy 100% Agave Tequila. Don't buy anything labeled Gold or Silver. These are mixing tequilas, and who does that? Drink from a snifter glass, hold it in your mouth for 3-8 seconds, breath in before you swallow, breath out after.

Best Hang - El Palomar, En La Plaza

El Palomar is a coffee shop and restaurant next to the church in the Plaza. They have great food and free wifi. You can sit on the balcony and people watch while enjoying your morning coffee. 

Best Hotel - Hotel Tequila

If you drive a big rig like us, theres only one "best hotel", and thats Hotel Tequila. For 250 pesos a night you'll get a nice room, super hot showers, and most important a secure surface lot for parking, which is VERY rare in this town. 

Propiedades De Tequila - Properties Of Tequila

1. Quita la angustia- Removes heartache 

2. Extingue la culpa- Extinguishes guilt

3. Hace Olivdar- Makes one forget

4. Suelta la lengua- Loosens the tongue

5. Arregla corazones rotos- Fixes broken hearts

6. Hace compadres- Makes friends

7. Eliman la timidez- Eliminates timidity

8. Levanta tu animo- lifts your mood

9. Abre puertas- Opens doors

10. Fomenta relaciones romanticas- Encourages romantic relationships

The central plaza is the place to hang out in Tequila. They have several tasting bars around the perimeter, and the worlds best coffee shop right next to the big church. Below Stevie enjoys a flight in the early afternoon...

Stevie sitting on the balcony at the coffee shop, the church in the background...

Stevie sitting amongst a Blue Agave field. It's crazy to think that the beverage comes from these cactus looking plants. Fields and fields of these plants surround the town.

How Tequila is made:

Step #1 - grow a Blue Agave plant. These pineapple looking plants take 8-12 years to mature! Before harvest the flowering stalk is cut, forcing the juices into the central stem and swelling the heart of the plant

Step #2 - Cook the Agave. These ovens are stuffed with the plant and cooked with steam for 26 hours

Step #3 - After the cooking, the juices are separated from the fibers and sent into these huge fermenting tanks where they are cooked for 72 hours

Step #4 - After fermenting comes distilling. All tequila is distilled a minimum of 2 times. From here the Blanco goes into the bottle, while the Reposado and Anejo go into barrels for aging.

Tequila growing regions of Mexico