In celebration of the much beloved (non)holiday that is International Tequila Day, weโve decided to get a definitive answer to the age old debate:
Is expensive tequila really worth it?
If the destination is all the same, does it matter how you get there? Sure, weโd all rather roll up to the party in an Aston Martin than a Honda Civic, but at what point should you pull back for something a bit moreโฆground level?
In defence ofโฆ
There is, so Iโm told, a significant difference in taste. This difference is largely beyond my palate, but for those of you more refined than I, itโs worlds apart. Regardless of whether you and I can discern the said difference is not the principle concern. Itโs what the overarching quality of the flavour indicates.
Weโve all thrown back nasty shots. These shots were in all likelihood poured from bottles known as โmixtoโ. Mixto tequilas are fermented with up to 49% non-agave sugars, some making use of cheap cane sugar with horrid additives like glycerine, caramel colouring, sugar syrup, as well as oak and almond extract.
This is a blatant cheating of the system, as they can still legally call it tequila when itโs essentially half and half. This is also how you get a bitch of a hangover. I mean sure, you shave a few dollars off production costs and bump up the profit margins, but is it even actually tequila at that point? Half and half. In what other field is that legal? Imagine being given a half dose penicillin by a doctor. Thereโd be less of us standing. Of course, youโll never catch any producers labelling their stuff with โmixtoโ. Thatโd be a death sentence. Instead, theyโll just omit a certain key phrase that is the golden assurance for quality. So whatโs this phrase you should be looking out for?
Real tequila is made from blue agave. You should never drink anything that doesnโt say itโs โ100% blue agaveโ .
Obviously this means paying a bit more to lick salt and suck limes, but it also means youโre getting what you rightfully deserve. Interpret that as you willโฆ
And all againstโฆ
As always, the Yankees always win because no one can keep their eyes off those damn pinstripes. And by that I mean all the bells and whistles, all the flashy George Clooney endorsements, and vast stretch of expertly designed labels will always (always) blur the line between true quality and ridiculous hype. Not to name names, but there are certainly more than a few cases of the emperorโs new clothes, or the man who sold the Brooklyn Bridgeโฆ twice. Be wary of the actual taste, and quit eyeballing those damn blue pinstripes. Itโs the mark of the blue agave you really want.
The verdict
The lesson here that dangerously borders on fence-sitting is that paying more doesnโt always mean youโre getting what your bank statement reads. The undeniable mark of a value here is in the production label. But, for the sake of surrendering a definitive answer: yes, pricier tequila is worth it. Note the use of โpricierโ in place of โexpensiveโ, and maybe place a casual โgenerallyโ there somewhere.
Related: The difference between cheap & expensive whisk(e)y.
