Brown Forman Tequila Mexico
Herradura
46%
NAS
Herradura recently took a trip down memory lane with the U.S. release of its 92-proof Blanco, an expression conceived in 1870 that's been readily available in Mexico over the past century or so. According to the brand, the recipe has remained completely unchanged over the years. Lowland agaves are cooked in clay ovens, extracted via roller mill and open-air fermented using natural yeasts. There seems to be some disagreement online regarding the difference between the "red caps" (those available in Mexico) and "blue caps" (those now available in the U.S.), though the dissimilarity appears to come down to a slight difference in price, not the spirit itself. In case a larger difference rears its head down the road, we will note, for the record, that our review is based on a bottle of the blue caps.
Raided Score is a conversion from an external site's score, to our in house uniform scoring system. Please see the FAQ for more.
Decidedly vegetal, packing in hints of raw agave, mint, fresh-mowed grass and a little parsley. There's a smidge of dry ethanol burn that hits the nose, eventually opening up to a splash of minerality.
A nice helping of roasted agave segues into a spicy palate of jalapeño and white pepper. It isn't dripping with complexity, per se, but a slightly nutty note brings to mind macadamia nuts.
Brief on the finish. There's some pepper, rosemary and celery that tingles at the back of the throat then dissipates. No noticeable burn from the higher proof point.
A nice surprise! It's cool to see legacy brands experimenting with 45% ABV and up, even if the end result is destined for the bar cart. At its price, I think this makes a killer ranch water or paloma mixer that'll add just the right bite.
83
Disclosure: The producer provided this sample to review free of charge, and without expectation of review or rating.
