Tequila Tasting

[The Knize]

If you have a deep pocket, Fortaleza is home run. I can only order it . I went to Texas in May and brought back a bottle. One of the oldest and one of the best.

I agree. So far I think Forrtelza is my favorite. I have only had the blanco as far as I remember. An absolute home run.

Funny, I was just on-line looking around for things available in DC, and one place seems to actually have Fortaleza blanco for $89.99 in stock, they say. That is a pretty good price and I do not think I have ever seen it listed as in stock around here for a long time. I managed to catch a bottle of Forteleza at one store for $99.99. But they only had the one bottle. This same store recentl had a bottle of Blantons for $99.99, and has had green and yellow chartruese for $75 a bottle. Only one bottle of each though!

The store that says it has Fortelza says it has Blantons in stock, for $169.99.

The various G4s, Tesoros, Ochos, and Don Fulano seem much more availalble, a tad cheaper, and quite good, if not absolutely as good as Forteleza.

 

[JimmyCB]

I did not realize PG county had Total Wine. I was impressed with the New Jersey one, or was it Delaware?

The Total Wine in Laurel is actually just across the border from PG County in Anne Arundel County. If you live in the MD suburbs, it's worth a special trip for its massive selection.

 

[honeycutt]

I agree. So far I think Forrtelza is my favorite. I have only had the blanco as far as I remember. An absolute home run.

Funny, I was just on-line looking around for things available in DC, and one place seems to actually have Fortaleza blanco for $89.99 in stock, they say. That is a pretty good price and I do not think I have ever seen it listed as in stock around here for a long time. I managed to catch a bottle of Forteleza at one store for $99.99. But they only had the one bottle. This same store recentl had a bottle of Blantons for $99.99, and has had green and yellow chartruese for $75 a bottle. Only one bottle of each though!

The store that says it has Fortelza says it has Blantons in stock, for $169.99.

The various G4s, Tesoros, Ochos, and Don Fulano seem much more availalble, a tad cheaper, and quite good, if not absolutely as good as Forteleza.

Would you send me the name of the store that carries Fortaleza. I'd like to know if they ship. The closes place me is deep south Florida. $ 89.99 is a very good price. But the shipping is the killer for me. Thanks Knize

 

[The Knize]

Would you send me the name of the store that carries Fortaleza. I'd like to know if they ship. The closes place me is deep south Florida. $ 89.99 is a very good price. But the shipping is the killer for me. Thanks Knize

Sure I will PM you the name of that place and another. But I just went on-line to check its hours, and I am no longer finding Fortaleza listed. I think earlier today on-line they said they had 9 bottle or something like that. The other place says it has 8 bottle of the blanco $99.99, but it closed today at 7 pm eastern time. I think both places ship.

I do not know if I trust the supposed on-line availability!

 

[honeycutt]

Sure I will PM you the name of that place and another. But I just went on-line to check its hours, and I am no longer finding Fortaleza listed. I think earlier today on-line they said they had 9 bottle or something like that. The other place says it has 8 bottle of the blanco $99.99, but it closed today at 7 pm eastern time. I think both places ship.

I do not know if I trust the supposed on-line availability!

Thank you.

 

[The Knize]

my pleasure

 

[honeycutt]

my pleasure

I called them this morning and they don't ship. Thanks for helping

 

[The Knize]

Fortaleza blanco still strength 92 proof $110. Excellent. Clean. Flavorful. Black pepper. Minerals. Citrus.

 

[The Knize]

I would say that there is a bottle of Siete Leguas in my future

That day came this morning! The blanco. I paid $52 plus tax. Looks like I overpaid. I am happy to have it though!

 

[The Knize]

I tried the Siete Leguas. Really good. Very full flavored. Minerals. Black pepper. Some reviews say sweet. I do not get that. To me much more to it than to Espolon. I would not be surprised to see this win a blind tasting. It seems big and should stand out. Very well priced. Very much a blanco.

 

[The Knize]

Lunazul Cristalino

I tried some of the regular Lunazul blanco last night and liked it a lot. I did not realize that the Cristalio is more prominently labeled Primero or I might have bought it instead. The regular banco was very nice for the money. Decent flavors and aromas, a bit of a burn which I like. No off notes. I was drinking it side by side with La Gritona reposado which really is nice, so a bit unfair.

I have not tried any house's Cristalino yet. I am not sure I get the idea. I guess the idea is to get some anejo complexity with blanco brightness by aging tequila on wood and then filtering out all of the color. Seems a bit artifical to me. I do not see Scotch makers running aged Scotch through filters to capture woody complexity but preserve malty tastes. If they created some kind of crystal clear wood extract and added it to blanco, I think there would be howls of protest. How does running the entire tequila outcput through filters really differ from doing that?

 

[The Knize]

I see that the Educated Barfly on You Tube, whose opinion I generally respect, does not like Cristalio tequila.

 

[EdHeart]

Thanks, jesselx. I live in the Washington, DC area. I am really not sure how liquor in grocery stores like Whole Foods works in DC itself. The one Costco store in DC has liquor. At least one Wegman's store does. Based on a quick search I do not see that the various Whole Food stores in DC have liquor, or at least teqila did not come up. Grocery stores in the surrounding Maryland and Virignia counties/aras do not carry liquor. Virginiais all state ABC liquor stores. Montgomery County, MD is all county-owned liquor stores. Prince Georges has lots of private liqour stores. I do not know what any Whole Foods would have there, frankly.

California sure does sell liquor in more kinds of places around here. I do not remember the prices being quite that good, but what the heck!

That is a truly amazing price for Forteleza reposado. i did a quick internet search for sources of Fortaleza reposado available in DC or the DC area. I found two places that seem to claim they have it in stock. $179 and $189 a bottle!

My wheelhouse for tequila is reposado. However, if I had to choose one in the Fortaleza line it would be the blanco. I love the rich, slightly oily mouth feel, the very slight smoke note, the overall smooth nature of the spirit and the earth, baked agave and touch of sweetness. Comparatively speaking I lean way more towards the repo when grabbing a bottle of Siete Leguas and G4. The shorter rest time in the oak adds a lovely mellow dimension added flavor without altering the base spirit too much.

And...Holy Jimador Batman...those prices are nuts, N.V.T.S., nuts. Talk about gouging!

 

[EdHeart]

I tried some of the regular Lunazul blanco last night and liked it a lot. I did not realize that the Cristalio is more prominently labeled Primero or I might have bought it instead. The regular banco was very nice for the money. Decent flavors and aromas, a bit of a burn which I like. No off notes. I was drinking it side by side with La Gritona reposado which really is nice, so a bit unfair.

I have not tried any house's Cristalino yet. I am not sure I get the idea. I guess the idea is to get some anejo complexity with blanco brightness by aging tequila on wood and then filtering out all of the color. Seems a bit artifical to me. I do not see Scotch makers running aged Scotch through filters to capture woody complexity but preserve malty tastes. If they created some kind of crystal clear wood extract and added it to blanco, I think there would be howeld of protest. How does running the entire tequila outcput through filters really differ from doing that?

I had one Cristalino, don't recall the brand but did recall, "Yuck!". The whole point of anejo are the resulting flavor notes from the barrel. Any tampering of these alters the flavor. It seems like simple logical chemistry, remove something and you remove something. In this case you're removing flavor.

I've not delved beyond my original experience because, like you noted, it seems artificial/unnatural. It is clearly (okay irony intended here) a completely different product. For those swayed and enjoy it: cool beans. Ultimately I chalk this up to slick marketing driving more market share to the makers. Viva innovation... Me, I'm not buying.

 

[The Knize]

Lalo, regular strength, 80 proof--one could easily say this maker is playing my song. It makes blanco only, no wood at all, no additives, all highlands, which it does capture, I take it intended to be very smooth. Reviews often describe it as buttery. To me that is more mouth feel than an actual butter flavor. Well-priced supposedly. I paid $49.95. Mild burn. To me fairly light on flavors aside from a basic agave. Maybe a little black pepper. A little citrus. Some minerals, for sure. No off notes.

It is good. And it is smoorh. Well-priced, I am not so sure. For my prefences, for a few dollars more or a few dollars less the Siete Legua blanco blows this one away. Way more complex. More interesring. I cant tell what Gritona reposado is going for these days. It would be a much better deal from my perspective. Still given what they were said to be attempting, this is a home run. And I really want to try the still strength.

 

[The Knize]

Well-priced supposedly. I paid $49.95.

Wow, prices on this one where I am seem to be all over the place. $49.95 may be something of a median.

Reviews often describe it as buttery. To me that is more mouth feel than an actual butter flavor.

I take that back a bit. I would say there is actually some butter flavor. I am more impressed with this one as I go along. It is more subtle than the Siete Legua.

This is said to be very much a highland tequila, and I thought I knew what highland tequilas taste like. But maybe not. I read: "Highland tequilas are often described as being sweeter, fruitier, and more floral in flavor. They typically have a smoother and more rounded taste." I would say smooth and rounded, but no sweet, fruity, or floral. Certainly not earthy or vegetal as lowland tequilas are often described as. Minerally, though.

 

[EdHeart]

I just scored a bottle of G4 Blanco 108⁰. A friend, restaurateur and co-author and I have a passion for tequila as I've previously noted. He really digs this iteration of G4. I have the 80⁰ as well. To my surprise the 108⁰ is much more enjoyable.

My first impression was rich, oily, olive, brine, mint, agave. There's more there and will take a few more sips (sip indeed...it's a very short road to disaster with this proofing) to fully appreciate, but right off I'd say this is a winner.

This article is an interesting read for the enthusiast and there are a few on here I'd welcome the opportunity to try.

Arriba, abajo, al centro, pa’ dentro

Hail to the High Proofs! These 20 Tequilas are Superb Sippers | TasteTequila

Hail to the High Proofs! These 20 Tequilas are Superb Sippers | High-proof tequilas, once only for hardcore drinkers, are now being released at a steady pace. Why? According to some drinkers, they represent the best

tastetequila.com

 

[The Knize]

I just scored a bottle of G4 Blanco 108⁰. A friend, restaurateur and co-author and I have a passion for tequila as I've previously noted. He really digs this iteration of G4. I have the 80⁰ as well. To my surprise the 108⁰ is much more enjoyable.

My first impression was rich, oily, olive, brine, mint, agave. There's more there and will take a few more sips (sip indeed...it's a very short road to disaster with this proofing) to fully appreciate, but right off I'd say this is a winner.

This article is an interesting read for the enthusiast and there are a few on here I'd welcome the opportunity to try.

Arriba, abajo, al centro, pa’ dentro

Hail to the High Proofs! These 20 Tequilas are Superb Sippers | TasteTequila

Hail to the High Proofs! These 20 Tequilas are Superb Sippers | High-proof tequilas, once only for hardcore drinkers, are now being released at a steady pace. Why? According to some drinkers, they represent the best

tastetequila.com

Good notes. Thanks for sharing. I cannot remember whether I have the G4 Blanco 108, the Don Fulano Fuerte, or both. Whatever I think they are great. I think the addtional proof makes for more intense flavor. How could it not? The regular proofs are simply still strength diluted with water. I do not think I would want something at a proof much higher than 110, but tequila does not seem to come out of the still at as high a proof as some bourbon. The Fortaleza still strength is only 92 proof. I just snagged a bottle of the Lalo still strength. It is 108 proof. I have not tried it yet.

Thanks for the article. I had no idea there were more than 20 tequilas out there that are high proof. Nice to see makers who are responsive to consumer desires!

 

[The Knize]

Lalo Blanco High Proof 108 proof--I paid $76. I will post more later when have more time to write and to ponder, but I thought I wold post something right away as this seems to be a limited release and the Lalo website says it is out of stock. I cannot quite tell, but this may become an even more rare item that it is.

Bottom line, this is excellent. Very clean, like the regular bottling to some extent, but this one is much more intense across the board. No off notes whatsoever. I would not have thought it was the same maker. Some burn, which is nice. I get a lot of minerals. Consistent with the reviews I see online an amazing amount of mouth-feel. Reviews often use the word viscous. My palate must be off that of many reviewers. Maybe because I am not that experienced tasting and writing up notes on tequilas. Many of the reviews talk about cinnamon and florals. I do not know what they are tasting as cinnamon. Florals maybe a bit. I woudl not say dominant. Others reference citrus. To me, sure, as most good blancos have some citrus. I get a big black pepper hit, especially in the finish, but I did not see much reference to that. That is something I really like. This is a very big blanco! Bravo!

 

[The Knize]

Turns out I have both the G4 108 and the Don Falano Fuerte, which is 100 proof. And I have the Fortaleza Still Strength, which is 92 proof and the Lalo High Proof, which is also 108. I tasted them all side by side tonight. I was surprised how distinct each was although each is excllent.