Chinaco Blanco
Chinaco · Tequilera La Gonzaleña
A living piece of tequila history — the first 100% agave brand imported to the US, still made with integrity by the González family. Chinaco Blanco is idiosyncratic, terroir-driven, and utterly worth keeping on the shelf.
Nose
Fresh cooked agave leads the way, layered with bright citrus peel, green herbs, and a whisper of white pepper. Faint mineral and damp earth notes give it a distinctive terroir signature.
Palate
Silky and medium-bodied, opening with sweet roasted agave and lime zest, moving into cracked black pepper, wet stone, and a subtle grassy herbaceousness. There's an unusual savory depth for a blanco — olive brine and green vegetal complexity.
Finish
Clean and moderately long, with lingering agave sweetness balanced by peppery warmth and a mineral echo that keeps calling you back.
- Agave
- 100% Blue Weber Agave, grown in the lowlands of Tamaulipas
- Production
- Agave is cooked in masonry ovens, milled, fermented with proprietary yeast, and double-distilled in copper pot stills. Bottled unaged directly after distillation.
- Region
- Tamaulipas, Mexico
- Cooking Method
- Agave is cooked in masonry ovens, milled, fermented with proprietary yeast, and double-distilled in copper pot stills. Bottled unaged directly after distillation.
- NOM
- NOM 1127
- Additives Free
- Yes
Cocktail Suggestion
The Lombardo Highball — 2 oz Chinaco Blanco, 3/4 oz fresh lime juice, 1/2 oz agave syrup, 3 dashes celery bitters, topped with grapefruit soda. Build in a tall glass over ice, garnish with a grapefruit twist and a sprig of mint.
Food Pairing
Grilled shrimp aguachile with cucumber and serrano, or fresh ceviche with lime and cilantro.
Founded by Guillermo González Díaz Lombardo in the Tamaulipas lowlands, Chinaco was the first 100% agave tequila ever exported to the United States in 1983 — a bottle that quietly reshaped how Americans understood the spirit.
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