Buy Tequila and Mezcal Online

Tequila and Mezcal are very similar alcoholic drinks, except that Tequila can only be made from the blue agave plant grown in a limited region close to the city of Tequila in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Sotol on the other hand can be made from other varieties of the agave plant and can be produced throughout the state of Jalisco and other areas too.

The agave which takes over ten years to mature and its heart which can weigh over fifty kilos is slowly cooked in large ovens to create a sweet liqueur which in turn is fermented. Quality Tequila is double-distilled in pot stills, continuous stills are used to produce the standard style of Tequila and most Mezcal.

Tequila is usually bottled in one of five categories:

Blanco or White………is a white spirit usually unaged, although some are aged for up to two months. This style is very popular in cocktails.

Joven or Gold………can be a blend of more than one category of tequila and is often flavoured with caramel and or sugar syrup.

Reposado……….is a tequila that has been aged in oak barrels for a period of two months to one year.

Anejo or Vintage……….has to by law be aged in small oak barrels for a minimum of one year, but less than three years.

Extra Anejo or Extra Aged…….would have been aged in small oak barrels for a minimum of three years.

Alexander Hadleigh Wine Merchants, Southampton, Hampshire, UK list a range of Mezcal and Tequila, including the five categories mentioned above.