Four Inspiring Spirits We Love This Hispanic Heritage Month

Who says tequila can’t be a work of art? Gran Sociedad is a tequila company founded by a group of artists and entrepreneurs whose craft extends beyond a blank canvas — they create liquid art — all the way up to the “Los Altos de Jalisco” region (Jaliscan Highlands in Mexico), renowned for its tequila production.

It goes without saying that Mexico and tequila go hand-in-hand, but the family-owned Gran Sociedad is intent on capturing the richness of Mexican culture in a glass of its high-end, 100% artisanal tequila while giving back to the communities that produce it.

Working closely with local artists, architects, and chefs, Gran Sociedad uses the best agaves born exclusively in the esteemed Los Altos region to bring some of the best of Mexican culture to the U.S. This tequila-producing region has numerous generations of shared knowledge flowing through it, which all contribute to the most complex and richest flavors of tequila.

Gran Sociedad tequila is aged in toasted American oak barrels, transforming the tequila into a dynamic, complex flavor profile with notes of caramel, vanilla, coffee, and honey.

A particular point of pride for Gran Sociedad? The fact that women make up about 60% of the team and contribute at every level, including their master distiller, Yadira Hernandez. By trade, Hernandez is a chemical engineer, but she has a passion for blending, balancing, and crafting the best sipping tequila around.

With meaning and purpose in every step along the way, Gran Sociedad exemplifies true Mexican culture through its tequila craft.



OAX ORIGINAL

OAX Original is known for its exquisite, striking, and eye-catching bottle design, which is a nod to both Mexican and Euro-American architectural designs. But behind the bottle and label, there is much more to this mezcal brand.

While mezcal is often misconstrued as just being a “smoky tequila,” it’s more refined and curious than that. And OAX Original mezcal goes one step further by using wild-grown agaves, making it even more complex than a traditional mass-produced spirit. Think of it like the terroir of a wine region that gives each creation its own uniqueness.

The agaves are harvested in Oaxaca, Mexico — which is often dubbed as the home of mezcal. After harvest, OAX cooks the agaves in the ground with their blend of oak and mesquite for about a week, stone grinds them by horse, and then ferments them in pine barrels with wild yeast, all before they’re distilled and bottled.

Third-generation Maestro Mezcalero Enrique Hernandez Zenea has crafted three expressions of the agave — Arroqueño, Tobalá, and Tepeztate. The three-headed OAX Original lineup is all small-batch mezcal, each with dramatically different aromas and flavors that leave the palate yearning for more.



CASA DRAGONES

It might sound odd that a tequila company formed in 2009 is steeped in history, but that is just what Casa Dragones is.

The name itself pays homage to the Dragones cavalry from San Miguel de Allende, which helped spark Mexico’s independence movement from Spain, eventually leading to the Mexican War of Independence. Further, Casa Dragones was co-founded by Bertha González Nieves, who was the first woman ever to be certified as “Maestra Tequilera” by the Academia Mexicana de Catadores de Tequila, earning her the occasional nickname of the “First Lady of Tequila.”

Nieves’s vision was to create a tequila brand that, when it comes to food pairings and sipping drinks, would stand toe-to-toe amongst other luxury spirits like whiskey, cognac, and even wine. With grand visions like this, on which she continues to follow through, it’s no wonder that Nieves has been named one of Mexico’s top young businesswomen by a leading Mexican business magazine.

Emphasizing taste over quantity, Casa Dragones is an independent, small-batch producer that takes great care to ensure each bottle is the best it can be, even hand-signing and numbering every single bottle.

Casa Dragones has three different 100% Blue Agave tequila offerings in its lineup: the original Casa Dragones Joven aged in new American oak barrels, Casa Dragones Blanco, an unaged expression to give you a direct taste of agave, and Casa Dragones Añejo, which is a blend of tequila aged in French and American oak barrels.

TEQUILA MANDALA

Tequila Mandala was founded in 2016 by Jose Joel Garcia Barreto, Arturo Lomeli Ibarra, and Humberto Ibarr with a simple yet difficult goal of bringing premium sipping tequila to the United States. Judging by the contents of their beautiful artisan bottles, they’ve accomplished what they set out to do.

Located in Jalisco, Mexico, Tequila Mandala produces four types of tequila: Blanco, Reposado, Añejo, and their crown jewel, Extra Añejo. Their Extra Añejo is aged for a minimum of three years in a blend of French white oak and cognac barrels. The longer aging time and the mix of barrels impart amazing complexity and smoothness with each sip. This tequila is a gorgeous amber color and has some definite hints of vanilla and oak from the barrels.

And did we mention the beautiful bottles? Tequila Mandala has some of the most ornate bottles we’ve seen; they’re hand-painted, so every ceramic bottle is also a unique piece of art. The bottles represent the diversity and history of Mexican culture and folklore but also supports artists as the company rotates their Special Edition bottle colors and designs twice a year.

As for the name, the word “mandala” simply means “circle” in Sanskrit. But the mandala is a powerful symbol for numerous cultures throughout the world and has a significant meaning for this tequila company, too. The mandala symbol, which adorns every bottle, conveys life’s infinite potential that has no beginning or end. Further, in Mexican culture, the concept of family is considered sacred and infinite, much like the mandala.

MORE TO CELEBRATE

While this short list doesn’t even begin to cover the list of all of the Hispanic-owned businesses paving the way in the spirits industry, it’s a great acknowledgment of those who are injecting their cultures into the spirits they produce.

And don’t think that tequila and mezcal are all that’s on display from these Hispanic owners, either. Check out Sia Scotch Whisky for a spirit started through a crowd-funding campaign and one of the first Hispanic founders to make a scotch whisky. Symphony No. 3 Rum embodies the spirit of the American whiskey-making process by using rye barrels in the aging process. The creators behind Casa Lumbre formed Community Spirit Vodka and uses their brand to further positive social change. Find even more brands to celebrate in our Hispanic Heritage Month Collection!

With every last drop of the bottle, you’ll appreciate the true labor of love that contributed to this craft. Taking the time to learn about the owners only makes your drink more enjoyable, allowing you to sip knowing that these spirits are truly luxury in a bottle.

So get out there during Hispanic Heritage Month (and beyond) to enjoy all of these unique and delicious spirits!