Review: El Bandido Tequila Reposado
El Bandido Tequila was launched June 2021 by NHL HOF Defenseman Chris Chelios and former Green Bay Packer safety Jim Bob Morris. They worked with Karina Rojo, Master Distiller at Tequila El Viejito Distillery. Over 50% of the workers at El Viejito are women. This distillery currently produces 17 tequila brands including Mico, El Viejito, and Santo Fino. We previously reviewed El Bandido Blanco and they will soon release El Bandido Anejo. Today we are reviewing El Bandido Reposado. It is crafted with 100% Blue Weber agave grown in the Highland region, 6000 feet above sea level. The agave is hand trimmed and chopped before slow roasting for 40 hours in traditional hornos ovens. Once cooled and shredded the juice is fermented with a proprietary yeast and twice distilled in copper pots. The first distillation takes 5 hours, the second 17 hours. The spirit is aged in American oak barrels that have been stripped and re-charred. The spirit is triple filtered and oxygenated prior to bottling. The aroma leads with cinnamon, charred oak, and cooked herbal agave. Additional time brings out salted caramel. The sweet cinnamon and cooked agave entry builds to a vanilla, sugar cookie, and herbal agave peak. It fades with citrus and salted caramel and finishes with baking spice, oak, lemon peel, herbal agave, and black pepper.
NOM: 1107
Region: Highland
40% Alcohol
Score: 88
Award: Silver Medal