Today we've got something really special that comes from quite a bit of Tequila history that's definitely worth talking about.

Here's a little bit of lore: The story begins with one Eduardo Orendain, Orendain who continued his family's tradition of tequila production that is said to begin as far back as 1844.

His son was the famed Don Eduardo Orendain González, who in 1926 founded La Mexicana, a distillery that would mark the beginning of the Orendain family's journey into large-scale tequila production.

As it turns out, he would become quite the figure in the Tequila world. He also held the titles of founder and first president of the Regional Chamber of Tequila Industry, and of The Tequila Regulatory Council. 

The CRT headquarters in Guadalajara features statues of four iconic figures in the tequila industry: Juan Beckman (Cuervo), Javier Sauza (Sauza), Gabriela de la Peña (Herradura), and Eduardo Orendain (Arette). These families, known as the "Tequila Founding Families," are recognized for their pioneering role in the production of tequila.

In 1986, Tequila Arette was founded by brothers Eduardo Sr. and Jaime Orendain in the El Llano distillery. The distillery also holds the distinction of being the third oldest distillery in the town of Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico.

The brother's grandfather had actually moved out of the El Llano distillery some years back, whereby his grandfather then eventually moved back in and started Arette, naming it after the champion horse that won Mexico its first Olympic gold medals. 

Since then, the Orendain family has remained till date the only one that is independent and family-owned, which is truly a historic achievement. Orendain and Arette have become something of a cult favourite for anyone who's into additive-free Tequilas.

We actually had the opportunity to sit down and have a chat with fifth-generation member Eduardo Orendain Jr., where he shared about his experiences in the world of Tequila!

| Read: A Tale Of Tequila: A Conversation With Eduardo Orendian, Fifth Generation Scion Of The Orendain Family

The El Llano distillery where Arette Tequila is made.

Today we're going to try Arette Tequila's high proof Fuerte 101 (50.5% ABV) that's Tequila that comes right off the stills and is envisaged to deliver the purest agave qualities possible, which can't be done at the more standard 40% ABV - and thus high proof Tequila should lead to more flavours.

This also comes from Arette's Artesanal line where it's open top fermented with wild yeasts, and in concrete vats, made from agave that's traditionally brick oven cooked - this is as opposed to the more common industrial style where the agave is cooked in a larger autoclave and fermented with distiller's yeast in stainless steel tanks.

Now, without further ado, how does tequila from this esteemed producer with such a history taste like?

Arette Fuerte 101 Blanco Tequila, 50.5% ABV - Review

Tasting Notes

Colour: Clear

Aroma: Bright, fresh and yet ridiculously mellow. It’s rich and firm, almost crystalline even. It centers squarely on freshly chopped agave vegetals that’s heady, incredibly fresh, herbaceous and rounded out.

Taste: Medium-bodied, really good richness here as well, more of those freshly chopped succulent vegetals and herbaceousness of a sort of mint and thyme jelly. There’s a deep core of clean vegetal sweetness about it, agaves cooked or rendered down to a preserve or a reduction. It’s really mellow, rounded and fresh. It’s giving agave jam.

Finish: A little more peppery here, more savoury as well of grilled succulents. It’s a long and aromatic finish, cusping mellowness and yet being satisfying punchy. It’s bright, with great flavour intensity along with a that same concentrated sweetness and richness that carries all the way through.

My Thoughts

It’s never easy describing that precise succulent, vegetal note in any way other than to call it what it is - agave. Yet here we probably ought to try a little hard considering just how focused and concentrated it was on that one particular note of aroma and flavour on the palate. Perhaps the best I could describe it is if you soaked agave in water and cooked it down, and thereafter removed the agave, and with the poached agave, it’s then made into a jam or a preserve - now the flavour here falls somewhere right in between that leftover water from the poached agave and the agave preserve or jam. It’s firm and concentrated, yet incredibly fresh, mellow and rounded.

Now back to the overall quality here - it is incredibly impressive to say the least. Somehow with the raised proof, this has only become more concentrated in flavour, more rounded, and yet retains that freshness and mellowness. There’s no sharpness whatsoever - and for that matter none of that confectionary sweetness as well. It’s entirely centered on that agave quality - totally pure, expressive and well-defined. It’s aromatic, rich and evocative of these shades of vegetal succulents, creamy and smooth too.

I can say without a doubt you haven’t tried Tequila until you’ve tried the Arette Fuerte 101.

Pssssst. Good Tequila might be hard to find in Singapore, but Arette is now officially available here, and is distributed by La Maison du Whisky. LMDW also organises the must-go event of the year Whisky Live Singapore, which is where we got to meet Eduardo Orendain, the man behind Arette!

Lok Bing Hong A budding journalist that loves experiencing new things and telling people's stories. I have 30 seconds of coherence a day. I do not decide when they come. They are not consecutive.