Cazadores Reposado Tequila (40%)

Ever tried Mozart with your tequila? Perhaps you have without even knowing it, because if the Bacardi-owned distillery’s website is to be believed, Cazadores plays Mozart in the fermentation room in order to “soothe the yeast and water particles.” Which may or may not be true, but certainly doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of this tequila.

For those unfamiliar, the designations of tequila are fairly straight forward: mixto is, as the word implies, a mix of sugars derived from Weber blue agave and those from other sources, said other sugars comprising not more than 49% of the total; white or blanco tequilas require no aging and, if not mixto, must be made from 100% Weber blue agave; reposado tequilas are aged in oak for a minimum of two months; añejos are aged for a minimum of one year; and extra añejos spend up to three years in oak, although actual age statements are extremely rare. All tequila must be a product of agave grown in and a distillery situated within a defined geographic area, mainly Jalisco but also incorporating portions of other provinces.  

Unlike some reposado tequilas, the Cazadores is aged for up to a year in virgin oak, rather than bourbon or other used barrels, giving it but a pale yellow hue in place of a darker countenance. On the nose it delivers a soft and strongly agave-accented aroma, a bit floral and oaky, but mostly a very pleasing vegetal perfume with the slightly salty-spicy accent that I find is typical of blue agave. The palate entry is sweetish and lightly fruity, fresh lime and lemon peel mixed with a hint of orange blossom water, and dries nicely as the flavour progresses. On the mid-palate is more pronounced orange and leafy, vegetal notes, becoming spicier as it washes across the tongue to a peppery second half and a satisfyingly and appetizingly dry finish with a touch of oak and lingering spice.

While its pale colour might be reminiscent of that of a lesser, mixto tequila, the kind that you drink with a shot and a shudder, the Cazadores Reposado is about as far as you can get from the shooting tequilas of our misspent youth. This is a refined and sophisticated spirit, sold at a most reasonable price and as suitable for sipping straight as it is mixing into a multiplicity of cocktails.  

87 ($42 - $44; CRITIC’S CHOICE)