El Tesoro Añejo
El Tesoro · La Alteña Distillery (NOM 1139)
El Tesoro's tahona-crushed, oven-roasted production methods are traditional to the bone, and the two-year rest in ex-bourbon barrels at altitude in Arandas lets the highland terroir breathe through. This is añejo tequila that respects the agave rather than burying it under oak.
Kit Aromas
Nose
Rich cooked agave weaves through caramel and vanilla, with a backbone of toasted oak. Subtle cinnamon and a hint of roasted almond emerge with air. There's a persistent earthiness underneath it all.
Palate
Velvety and full, with butterscotch and baked pear merging into warm oak spice. The agave character stays present and honest despite the extended wood contact. A touch of pepper lifts the mid-palate.
Finish
Long and warming, with vanilla, oak, and a clean agave fade.
- Agave
- 100% Blue Weber Agave (Highland)
- Production
- Brick oven cooked, tahona crushed, naturally fermented
- Region
- Arandas, Jalisco, Mexico
- Cooking Method
- Brick oven cooked, tahona crushed, naturally fermented
- Distillation
- Double distilled in copper pot stills
- NOM
- 1139
- Additives Free
- Yes
Cocktail Suggestion
Añejo Manhattan — 2 oz El Tesoro Añejo · 1 oz sweet vermouth · 2 dashes mole bitters · Stir with ice, strain into a coupe, garnish with a brandied cherry.
Food Pairing
Slow-braised short ribs with ancho chile sauce
Produced at the family-owned La Alteña distillery in the red-soil highlands of Arandas, where cool nights and warm days create ideal resting conditions, El Tesoro uses a tahona wheel and brick ovens in a process largely unchanged for generations.
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