Today I was at yet another tequila seminar as part of this year’s Vancouver Cocktail Festival. Hosted at Prophecy Bar, we were getting better acquainted with Don Julio’s portfolio.
Hosted by Rob Renda, Luxury Portfolio Ambassador who took us on a journey of Mexican flavours paired with Don Julio Tequila. He was very animated and lively, keeping the audience engaged within the empty bar.
The afternoon started with a walkthrough the tequila making process, from agriculture through to bottling, all while sampling the Don Julio family of tequilas. We sampled Don Julio Blanco, Don Julio Reposado, Don Julio Anejo, Don Julio 70 and Don Julio 1942.
I appreciated the history and fun facts described in layman terms. We ran through tequila’s origin story, which started as Pulque made by the Mayans. This is a fermented milky kombucha-like beverage made from the fronds of agave. Admittedly it is not that delicious, but it smelled it, and this is what had the Mayans curious enough to try the liquid, earning themselves “mystical powers”, aka getting drunk in doing so.
Next we learned of the man behind the Don Julio brand, including how he earned his title of Don and the respect it signifies. Respect garnered from the time and care he gave his agave plants that would one day be made into tequilla. Each plant was given its own room to mature with the full benefit of the sun. He went so far as to hand trim any weeds that would compete with them for nutrition. Each agave plant takes 6-12 years to grow, making it an investment.
Don Julio utilizes the ancestral method of making tequila, where there is not a lot of mechanics or modern conveniences. For example using a donkey and a wheel to mill the agave versus a machine that grinds.
We then learned how to make tequilla. This was a great introductory class with enough obscure facts for more skilled tequila drinkers to appreciate. From harvest to baking, shredding, fermenting, distilling, sometimes aging, before bottling.
We then got into the tasting starting with Don Julio Blanco Tequila, non aged with notes of crisp agave and a clean and dry finish.
Here, we learned the misconception of swirling the glass before drinking, and were taught not to as it agitates the vapours of the spirits and hurts the nose. We were advised to not stick our nose on and sniff, but instead to breath in through the mouth. You can taste the vegetal essence of the agave, grassy with vanilla; ending in a black peper finish from their propriety yeast that only Don Julio uses. This would be a bottle to use in a Paloma with a sour element and sugar.
Each sample had a flavour pairing of sour and sweet to highlight the tequila. For the Blanco it was a lemon wedge dipped into agave syrup. The latter cut into the former mellowing the “white” tequilla out.
The Reposado Tequila is “rested”’for 8 months in ex-bourbon American oak barrels. It has notes of ripe stone fruit, vanilla, and cinnamon with a silky and warm finish of caramel, butter, and honey.
The pairing for this was orange and cinnamon, reminiscent of a spirit forward Old Fashioned with with Anejo.
The Anejo Tequila is aged for 18 months in American ex-bourbon barrels. The result is notes of butterscotch and wild honey with a lightly spiced and earthy finish.
This we had with dark chocolate, which came across sweet like milk cocoa in comparison to the anejo.
The 70 Cristalino Anejo is aged for 18 months and then charcoal-filtered. This is
not a catagory of tequila, but more of a sub-catagory or style. It is aged, but brought back down to clear through filtering, leaving it clean like a Blanco. This has a juicy and smokey start with a longer toasted finish, making it a great way to get people into the catagory of tequila
The pairing here is grapefruit and brown sugar to heighten the lightness of the spirit.
The 1942 Anejo tequila is aged for 24 months in ex-bourbon barrels. The end product has notes of chocolate, caramel, and toffee; with a vanilla fragrance and a sweet agave finish.
We also learned about, but didn’t get to try, Don Julio’s luxury and “ultima” collections. The former uses Port wine casks in their deluxe bottles and the “ultima” is made from the last plants Don Julio planted himself before he passed away.
In closing, this was a nice way to learn about this international brand, in a wonderful setting with an exuberant host.
Prophecy Bar
801 W Georgia St, Vancouver, BC V6C 1P7
(604) 336-3383
prophecybar.com
