Review: Republic Tequila – Anejo
If you're going to start a Tequila company in the United States what better place than Texas, right? That's just what Tom Nall and Ken MacKenzie thought when they set out to create Republic Tequila. From the looks of it, Ken is the brains of the distilling operation and Tom is the...Cowboy. Because you just can't launch a Tequila in Texas without a Cowboy. Actually the Tequila itself is made by the La Quemada distillery to Republic's specifications. But, from the taste of things, they've worked really hard to craft something all their own. It's actually the
What I really like about the flavor of this tequila is they seem to have removed that part of the agave flavor that always leaves me cold - the extremely vegetal flavor. It just always rubs me the wrong way. Republic Tequila has almost none of it. When I get a taste for tequila these are the flavors that I'm remembering which draw me back. With MOST tequilas you have a very strong vegetal flavor that's a bit difficult to overcome (maybe its a U.S. thing? or a ME thing). I think this is why the classic margarita has such strong flavors. It needs them to get over the initial punch in the face that most tequilas carry. If you're a purist you might not like this, but for me (and for mixing) I think it's perfect. It's smooth, has very little burn, and (something you might not expect) this tequila actually goes really well with a bit of dark chocolate.
Lastly, I'm not going to lie to you, bottles matter. The matter even more when you're a new brand trying to get yourself some shelf space. Republic Tequila knocked it out of this park with this bottle. If you're buying tequila in Texas would you REALLY want to buy something foreign? Or would you buy a bottle you can use as a MAP to get you home?
Our Grade: **** (Gladly Recommended) Price: $45-50
