All you wanted to know about mezcal, including tequila and made-in-India agave drinks

Don Julio Reposado, Pistola Reposado and Casamigos Anejo. Reposado is aged for 2-12 months whereas Anejo is aged in oak barrels for 12-36 months.

About three years ago, Rakshay Dhariwal noticed a steady but pronounced shift in his affluent clients’ taste towards tequila. Dhariwal, who founded Passcode Hospitality in 2012 and now runs restaurants such as PCO, Saz, and Ping’s Cafe across India along with his sister Radhika, says that after experimenting with high-end gin, several single malt drinkers he knew moved over to ultra-premium tequila and stayed there.

“100% agave tequila has less sugar and calories than similar liquors, so that’s maybe one reason. But tequila has been shining under the sun for a long time, and India has now gotten onto it,” says Dhariwal.

Late last year, the duo launched Pistola, India’s second homegrown 100% aged agave spirit brand after the pioneering DesmondJi from Desmond Nazareth. Pistola, a reposado , is blended, bottled, and aged in Goa and will eventually also be available in ‘smoky agave’ and anejo variants. (Tequila can only be called tequila if it is made from blue agave and produced in certain regions of Mexico.)

Maya Pistola is aged in Virgin American White Oak and ex-bourbon barrels.

Dhariwal is not the only person who feels sanguine about tequila’s prospects in India. Spirits importer and distributor Sharad Sethia, who describes himself as a tequila aficionado, says that it’s all about sipping tequila now and not shooting it. “People have even been paying top dollar for stuff that’s kind of just average, but has big names backing it. And by top dollar, I mean anything from Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 and above for a bottle,” says Sethia who often shuttles between Delhi and Goa. “Celebs, the high rollers—they are all having it.

Globally, the premium tequila wave has been gathering momentum for the last half-decade, and the spirit has transcended its reputation as a party drink. The influx of Hollywood stars and musicians into the space—either as brand ambassadors or co-owners of brands—has added a sheen to tequila. Everyone from Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Nick Jonas to Adam Levine and Kendall Jenner is either associated with, or has launched a tequila brand. Even actor George Clooney co-owned a tequila brand—Casamigos was acquired by British multinational beverage alcohol company Diageo for $1 billion.

Not all of it is great tequila, says Sethia. “Some of it, like Casamigos, is pretty good, the others are of average quality. But the star power helps keep premium tequila in the news.”

According to International Wine & Spirit Research, which supplies data and market intelligence to the liquor industry, the global tequila market has increased by 22%, with the premium-and-above-price segments registering a volume sales increase of 64%.

The soaring demand—and supply chain issues caused by the pandemic—means that good tequila is hard to source, especially in India.

Late last year, Kunal Patel, managing partner at Mumbai-based Monika Enterprises, one of India’s largest importers and distributors of spirits, could only bring in three bottles of the 1800 Milenio tequila for an event in Ladakh despite having paid for several more bottles.

1800 Melenio Tequila

“Premium tequila has seen aggressive growth since late 2019-20, and the pandemic—and travel restrictions—meant people splurged on premium offerings across the board and that included tequila,” says Patel who imports 1800 Tequila and Jose Cuervo, among others. “Earlier we would get requests for around 10 cases a week from retailers, now it’s around 60 to 70 cases.”

Patel says that consumption of premium tequila has doubled since 2019. Last year Monika Enterprises sold around 12,000 9-litre cases. Patel also predicts that as consumers get bored of gin, they will start, or have already started, moving towards tequila. Here’s a quick guide to get to know more about the spirit that India’s movers and shakers are sipping.

Mezcal and Tequila: Tequila is a type of mezcal, just as Irish whiskey and bourbon are types of whiskies. Mezcal is defined as any agave-based spirit, but unlike mezcal, which can be made from several different agave species, tequila can only be made from blue agave. It is a geographically-protected spirit that can only be produced in five regions of Mexico.

Blanco: Blanco tequila is usually unaged, or aged for less than two months.

Reposado: Tequila aged between two months to a year.

Anejo: Anejo is tequila that has been aged in oak barrels for one to three years.

Extra Anejo: Tequila that has been aged for over three years. Always sipped neat.

Mixto: Mixtos are not 100% blue agave spirits, and include cane or high fructose corn syrup.

Joven tequila: A blend of aged and unaged tequilas, but some of them are just blanco tequila with colourings and additives.

Cristalino: Extra anejo tequila that has been filtered to remove impurities and enhance taste. The clear tequila was first introduced in 2011 by storied Mexican company Don Julio.

Also read: The Tippling Point | It's the tequila that shot to dizzying heights