
Cimarrón Añejo Tequila
Cimarrón · Destiladora González González (NOM 1146)
One of the great value añejos in the American market. It drinks well above its shelf price, showing genuine highland terroir, restrained oak, and no additive gloss — a bottle for people who want to taste Arandas, not a marketing deck.
Nose
Cooked agave leads, followed by lifted orange peel, warm caramel, a whisper of vanilla bean and a dusting of cinnamon. Underneath sits a wet-stone minerality — the kind of grounded, damp-earth aroma that betrays its highland origin.
Palate
Medium-bodied and silkier than its price suggests. Roasted agave and butterscotch open the palate, then oak and black pepper roll in with baked apple, honey and a subtle cocoa note. There's a bright citrus lift running underneath that keeps the sweetness in check.
Finish
Medium length, warm and softly drying, with lingering vanilla, toasted oak, cinnamon and a return to that mineral-earth signature — the current running through the ground.
- Agave
- 100% Blue Weber Agave (Agave tequilana Weber var. azul), sourced from the Los Altos highlands around Arandas
- Production
- Highland agave slow-cooked in autoclaves, milled with a roller mill, fermented with proprietary yeast, and double-distilled in stainless steel pot stills with copper components. Aged approximately 12 months in ex-American whiskey oak barrels. Bottled without additives.
- Region
- Arandas, Los Altos, Jalisco, Mexico
- Cooking Method
- Highland agave slow-cooked in autoclaves, milled with a roller mill, fermented with proprietary yeast, and double-distilled in stainless steel pot stills with copper components. Aged approximately 12 months in ex-American whiskey oak barrels. Bottled without additives.
- NOM
- NOM 1146
- Additives Free
- Yes
Cocktail Suggestion
Ground Current — 2 oz Cimarrón Añejo, 0.75 oz Amontillado sherry, 0.25 oz agave syrup (1:1), 2 dashes Angostura bitters, 1 dash orange bitters. Stir with ice 25–30 seconds, strain into a chilled coupe or rocks glass over a single large cube. Express an orange peel over the top and drop it in.
Food Pairing
Cochinita pibil tacos with pickled red onion, or a plate of aged Manchego with quince paste and toasted almonds — both echo the tequila's caramelized agave and mineral backbone.
Built by Enrique Fonseca — the same distiller behind Fuenteseca and Tequila Ocho — Cimarrón was designed as an unapologetically honest highland tequila, made cleanly at NOM 1146 in Arandas and sold at a price that quietly embarrasses most of its shelf neighbors.
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