TresMujeres

Seven years in the making

In the midst of the Tequila Valley, its hilly terrain
ribboned by row upon row of spectacular blue agave
plants, sits the Tres Mujeres tequila operation. Like
many of the very small high-end tequila makers, Tres
Mujeres is a family-operated business and 100 percent
Mexican. And it produces only pure tequila — made from
100 per cent agave.

(Mexico's Tequila Regulatory Council now allows regular
tequila to be made with only 51 per cent agave. The
remainder may consist of sugar cane or other plant
sugars. Pure tequila must be marked 100 percent agave
and bottled in Mexico.)

Operations manager Sergio Partida is giving orders to
the jimadores, watching over the fermentation process
and checking the bottling of Tres Mujeres tequila while
he describes how a blue agave goes from the field to the
final product.

"A blue agave plant takes seven or eight years to reach
maturity. During that time, its large flower stock is
regularly cut off, so that the energy and sugars devoted
to the flower's growth remain in the heart of the agave
instead," says Partida.

Sipping the pure tequila

High-end, pure tequilas may be clear or amber.
Their depth of colour depends on the length of time
they spend in wooden barrels.

Choosing clear or amber comes down to personal
preference.

"It's all a matter of taste," says Mr. Partida "There
are many who don't want anything to do with aged
tequila [known as añejo]. They simply like clear
tequila [known as blanco]. They don't want anything
to do with colour, smell or flavour of wood. They
just want the clear version — with the characteristics
of the original 100 percent agave tequila."

Partida says the aged tequila is very flavourful, but
he still prefers the clear tequila.