Hacienda de Tepa is a high-quality ordinary tequila, designed for the mass consumer. It is made by one of the largest Mexican companies – Tequilera de Arandas. The drink is exported to 30 countries.
Good tequila is not a cheap pleasure. Many manufacturing operations are still performed manually. There are quite a few premium brands on the market, but the company’s tequilero masters were faced with the task of creating a high-quality inexpensive drink. Moreover, the cost reduction should not have led to a deterioration in the taste or smell of tequila.
The way out was found in the maximum automation of the production process. So, for baking agave, not traditional ovens are used, but stainless steel autoclaves, due to which the piñas are steamed much faster.
Tequilera de Arandas is a family business. Its owners fundamentally do not attract foreign investors, which is a rarity for Mexico in our time. The company produces 12 brands of tequila, the total production is 19 million liters per year.
Plantations are located in the Los Altos Valley, in the state of Jalisco – the region most favorable for growing blue agave. Tequilera de Arandas specialists introduce organic farming methods: they do not use pesticides, they use natural fertilizers, including production waste.
Tequila Hacienda de Tepa first went on sale in 1996 and immediately became popular. To taste, it does not resemble premium varieties, but precisely that (sometimes homemade) fragrant agave drink, with a glass of which Mexican peasants like to brighten up a Sunday evening. When exports began in 2007, the English-speaking Internet was literally flooded with reviews of quite decent Reposado tequila, much cheaper than analogues from other manufacturers.
Especially loved this variety in Asia. For example, in Japan, in many bars with a Mexican flavor, it is customary to start the tequila tasting program with Hacienda de Tepa Reposado.
Types of tequila Hacienda de Tepa
Tequilera de Arandas produces three varieties of Hacienda de Tepa tequila with a strength of 38%:
- Hacienda de Tepa Silver is a young colorless ordinary tequila containing 51% blue agave juice. The drink has a fresh smell of agave and freshly cut grass. Saturated, even a little sharp taste is successfully softened by the aftertaste of lemon zest. This tequila can be served as a digestif or used in cocktails;
- Hacienda de Tepa Gold is a light straw-colored ordinary tequila containing 51% blue agave juice. Approximately 1% cane sugar syrup is added to Silver tequila. As a result, the drink acquires a pleasant sunny color and a mild, moderately sweet caramel-citrus taste. Ladies especially love this tequila. It is usually drunk with lime and salt;
- Hacienda de Tepa Reposado is a golden tequila aged for two months in oak barrels. 100% blue agave juice. The honey-agave sweetness of the drink is balanced by a slightly astringent oak bitterness. The aftertaste is warm and spicy. It is best to drink this tequila slightly chilled, with an orange slice sprinkled with cinnamon.
