Tequila (NOM 1139), Blanco, 40% ABV, $30

I’ve been drinking El Tesoro Añejo Tequila for a while and enjoying it quite a bit… mostly in margaritas. Recently, I opened a bottle of their Platinum offering and am comparing it to Fina Estampa Blanco tonight.

The aroma is spicy, woody and vegetal with little sweetness. I still detect straw, olive and a bit of toffee, but the sweetness is very mild in comparison to the notable spice. There’s no hint of smoke or wood. The taste is somewhat briny, vegetal, tangy and spicy. The sweetness is most notable as it balances out the tart flavors. Up front, there’s lemon, sweet pepper, ginger, plum, pear, black pepper and tart cherry. The finish is leathery and spicy with a bitter wood that persists for a good while as the spice gently fades long after the fruits are gone. This is an easy  tequila to drink with more of the vegetal flavors of agave, while avoiding the typical agave “bite” that is prominent in cheap tequila.  It does all of this while offering a good amount of spice, which I like. The additional fruits and mildly sweet flavors blend well resulting in a well balanced tequila. It’s easy to see why people like this one. I highly recommend this one too along with the Añejo offering as well (I’ll get around to tasting notes for that one eventually).