Tequila Trips

Herradura uses the traditional brick ovens to bake its agaves.

Agave growing on the hillside, just below the house where Christine, former personal assistant to the Sauzas, lives.

Agave in Los Altos - notice the closely-packed fields, larger agave and red earth.

The seal from one of the French-oak barrels that held the outstanding añejo we tasted in the cellar.

Typical side street in the town. Taken on a walk through the town, during our brief free time on the second day.

Juan poses with Don Javier, 83, the owner of the small bar, Los Capalitos, in Tequila. Don Javier's grandfather opened the first bar in Tequila. It featured pool tables, and there was a photograph on the wall of the tiny bar of the original site.

Later, his father took over and moved locations. In 1940, Don Javier started working in the bar, and he's been there ever since. He loves the work, loves his customers, and was extremely gracious - and patient - with us.

The house drink was Patanga - a mix of cola, lime juice and tequila blanco (a mixto). Most of us were unable to finish one (rather too sweet for my palette). However, Don Javier brought out some dusty bottles of 100% agave from his back room - even going home to get a bottle of El Tesoro añejo, just for us.

This is the interior courtyard of the hotel in Tequila where the group stayed. Many of us used the small lobby beside this area as a place to chat, sample bottles of tequila, and just get to know one another. The lobby had a good selection of tequilas behind glass, for us to envy.

One of the jimadores who practiced his craft for us, during the field tour with Michael Landeros, agave grower, and owner of the Mision Tequillan hotel.

Still using the traditional tahona, but pulled by a small tractor instead of a mule. A small boutique tequila company, Los Abuelos prides itself on keeping to the traditional methods to retain the authentic tequila taste.

At the La Rojeña sign just before we began our tour of the Jose Cuervo plant, and museum.

Workers remove the cooked agave heads (piñas) from an autclave at Espolon, in Los Altos.

Agave piñas with their leaves stripped off are ready to be chopped up and placed in the ovens for baking.

Ruben Aceves Vidrio, International Sales Director (centre, in light blue shirt) explains the fermentation process to tour members, standing on the walkways at the top of the tall tanks at Casa Herradura.

One of the two jimadores who demonstrated their style at the field owned by Manuel Landeros. I shot some B&W film as well as colour on the trip.

Just a shot of the church in downtown Tequila.

Another photograph of the agave/maguey fields outside the town of Tequila, taken during the 2006 tour.

Another shot of agave fields around Tequila, taken March 2006.

A closeup of the serrated leaves of agaves at the Epsolon plant, near Arandas.

One of several photographs of the side streets, taken during our limited 'free time' on day two of the 2006 tour.

From day two of the 2006 tour

Some of the wooden fermentation vats (pipones) used by El Tapatio. The foam at the top is from the activity of the yeast on the agave must. These were the most active vats we saw on the trip.

These were built by the grandfather of the current owner, Carlos Camarena Curiel. They were painted by his father, but Carlos is letting them gradually return to their natural wood finish. Sometimes they wear out, so the staves are kept to help restore other vats.

Most of the distilleries we visited on the tour use larger, stainless steel tanks. El Tapatio is unrepentantly old-fashioned this way, including the use of a tahona (stone wheel) to crush the agave. The result shows in the rich taste of their products.

Here's where Herradura grows young plants from its greenhouses, to try and produce better strains of agave. The structure in the background is where Herradura's ovens are located.

I recently toured the Siete Leguas factory in Los Altos, and they are still using a horse-drawn tahona to grind their agave! (They have a second factory in which they use a more normal press method to grind the agave). Tequila from the two factories (the two methods) is mixed together to produce their tequila. However, I think that a substantial portion of the tequila is processed with the tahona-- the plant manager that I interviewed said that the tahona operates every day, twice a day.

Photograph of part of an old, abandoned tequila distillery located near La Fortuleza, on a small stream, in the town of Tequila, Jalisco.

A small part of a beautiful mural at Mundo Cuervo, that shows the history and culture of tequila and agaves.