Tequila

Where it started

The earliest records of a tequila-like spirit in Jalisco date to the 16th century.³ UNESCO inscribed the agave landscape around the town of Tequila as World Heritage in 2006, describing land shaped by the plant's use since the 16th century.⁷ The general declaration protecting the name was published on December 9, 1974.⁵ The CRT was founded on May 17, 1994.⁴ The current standard, NOM-006-SCFI-2012, was published on December 13, 2012.¹ In 1974 the industry made 53 million liters; the CRT's 50th-anniversary release put the latest annual figure at 599 million.⁵

Where and how it's made

The appellation covers 181 municipalities in Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Nayarit and Tamaulipas.² The CRT says it can take five to eight years from field to bottle.³ Harvesters (jimadores) cut the piña free; hydrolysis or cooking converts sugars such as inulin into fermentable ones, which the CRT says can take up to six hours at 120 to 125°C; mills separate juice from fiber; yeast ferments the must; and distillation in two phases, generally in stills, produces Tequila Blanco.³

Two categories sit on top of the classes. Tequila 100% de agave uses only blue-agave sugar and must be bottled in a plant the producer controls inside the territory.¹ Tequila (without "100%") needs at least 51 percent blue-agave sugar; up to 49 percent can come from other, non-agave sugars, and it may be bottled outside the territory.¹ Cold blending with other spirits is forbidden in both.¹ The Mexican standard sets every class at 35 to 55 percent alcohol by volume.¹ U.S. rules add a floor of 40 percent for agave spirits.⁸

The CRT reported 229 authorized producers and 3,402 registered brands in mid-2026, and says the U.S. takes about 81 percent of exports.⁶

How to taste it

A narrow copita or tulip glass, room temperature, no salt and lime the first time. Look for cooked agave, citrus peel and white pepper in a blanco; vanilla and caramel take over as age increases. Pairings: ceviche with blanco, carnitas with reposado, dark chocolate with añejo.

Styles and what the label means

• Blanco / Plata (Silver) — straight from the still, optionally rested under two months. blanco →
• Joven / Oro (Gold) — blanco blended with aged tequila, or blanco "abocado" with permitted softeners.¹
• Reposado (Aged) — at least two months in oak. reposado →
• Añejo (Extra aged) — at least one year in oak up to 600 liters. anejo →
• Extra añejo (Ultra aged) — at least three years. extra-anejo →
• Cristalino — aged and filtered clear; not a legal class. cristalino →
• NOM number and additives — how to read the fine print. nom-additives-and-labels →

Note the export translations: on an English label, "Aged" means reposado.¹