Par Elisa Nguyen PhungAugust 5, 2024
The Good Culture
Wine and spirits
From George Clooney to Kendall Jenner to The Rock, many celebrities have taken the now highly competitive tequila sector by storm, this Mexican drink which is particularly prosperous in North America and, more recently, conquering Europe.
From shooters garnished with salt and lemon to tasting glasses, it’s only a small step from the Mexico at the turn of the 21st century. Then of poor quality because mainly sold in the form of “mixto” (assemblies of agave and various sugars) and intended to be drowned in Margaritasthe tequila is gradually shifting into the premium spirits category, thanks to the United States, which sees it as a growing trend. This is how 100% blue agave tequilas are born, this succulent mainly originating from Jaliscoa Mexican state located on the ocean. Enough to shake up traditional alcohols and tickle the curiosity of celebrities.
Read also: Lorraine whisky, Marseille “Tequila”, Northern vodka: French spirits create local fever
In the United States, the golden age of premium tequila
While its share in the global spirits market remains relatively anecdotal (around 6.5% of volumes in 2023 compared to 2.5% in 2021), make no mistake: agave brandy has a high profile. Proof of this is the celebrity craze for this bottled white gold. One of the latest? Kendall Jennerfifth sister of the very prolific clan Kardashian. Model and reality TV star, the twenty-something is also the founder of 818a premium tequila brand launched in 2021 and available in four bottles including Eight Reserve, a blend of tequilas aged for three to eight years, contained in a voluptuous bottle in the shape of an “eight” and handcrafted in Pachuca, Mexico from local ceramics.
Kendall Jenner and an XXL bottle of her 818 tequila.
Another marketing feat: even before launching her brand, Kendall Jenner submitted her beverages to spirits competitions under the K & Soda name. Result: her “Reposado” vintage (aged from two months to a year) was voted the best in the world at the World Tequila Awards 2020 and its “Añejo” vintage won the bronze medal. So many publicity stunts – including the recent partnership around theespresso martini between 818 and Chamberlain Coffee, the coffee brand launched by the eponymous content creator – earning the brand already more than a million followers on Instagram, not to mention the approximately 300 million that the entrepreneur-influencer’s personal account has accumulated.
Kendall Jenner isn’t the only one who’s capitalized on her celebrity to put the Mexican brandy in the spotlight. Like her, singer Rita Ora (Próspero Tequila), actor Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock (Teremana Tequila) and rock band AC/DC (Thunderstruck) all got involved around the 2020s. Almost ten years before them, actor George Clooney and his partners Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman already set up Casamigosa premium tequila brand that is more than prosperous since it was worth no less than a billion dollars in 2017, the year it was bought by the British alcoholic beverage giant Diageo.
Beverages designed as works of art
Among the houses dedicated to high-end tequila, Blue Class Mexico is one of the most iconic. And for good reason: this Mexican brand, over 25 years old, has brilliantly relied on local craftsmanship to found what is now the first luxury house established in Mexico – a sign of the close ties between the world of spirits and that of art. Chantal Serrano, brand manager of this empire, knows it better than anyone: the container is at least as important as the content. Hence the absolute beauty of the porcelain carafes decorated with hand-painted patterns that have made the house famous.
As expensive as they may be (€265 for 70 cl for a Reposado Clase Azul Mexico tequila, €289 for 70 cl for an Eight Reserve 818 tequila to name just two), premium Mexican spirits find their audience every year. While the United States, Mexico and Canada are the three largest markets, the rest of the world is not far behind. Proof of this is the distribution of Clase Azul Mexico drinks in 70 countries around the world, including Europe where the smoky, exotic and powerful aromas of tequila are about to dethrone more conventional alcohols.
Clase Azul tequila takes particular care with the design of its bottles.
A place to take on the European market
Carlos Carvallo and Elsa Fuger left their native Mexico to settle in Suisse but have always thought about popularizing agave alcohol in Europe, a market still unfamiliar with tequila. The first says: ” We started by importing Mexican wine to Europe. After working as a pastry chef (the man was notably Emmanuel Macron’s pastry chef at the Elysée, Editor’s note), I wanted to try the tequila experience. » In 2022, the tandem created Ladya tequila obviously made in Mexico (in Guanajuato precisely) but, unusually, sweet because it is infused in Switzerland, with organic herbs and flowers from the Alps. This is a tequila for delicate palates! “, adds the man who, like other creators of high-end tequilas, takes particular care in bottling his white gold.
« Marketing is essential to find your place in this kind of niche market. To stand out, we opted for a bottle made from recycled glass in Switzerland, which looks like a champagne bottle. The only difference is the opacity of the container, which we wanted to be black to ensure that all the organoleptic qualities of the agave brandy are maintained. “, explains the person concerned. And to continue regarding the fine, golden logo adorning the said bottles: ” I owe it to my mother who I asked to draw it on a paper napkin. ».
Lady, the Swiss-Mexican tequila.
Agave brandy already a victim of its own success?
Two years after the launch of Lady, this Swiss-Mexican version of tequila is conquering many Swiss and French cocktail bars. However, as this market matures, the businesses of Carlos Carvallo and Elsa Fuger, like those of Kendall Jenner, are threatened by the shortage of agave. The very strict specifications for tequila require that the agave used be grown in only five Mexican states. However, recently, the British consultancy IWSR pointed out that the production of one litre of tequila involves the use of seven to eight kilos of agave…
Faced with the soaring prices that such rarity implies, other drinks based on agave grown anywhere in the world are beginning to make a small place for themselves on the premium spirits market. Thus, mezcal Mexican, but also the Marseille version, born following the uprooting of unwanted agaves on the Friuli archipelago (from €100 for a 35 cl bottle).
Casamigos… What else?
