Tequila has an incredible market as it’s an incredible spirit. It’s also a largely misunderstood spirit that’s often associated with wild partying and an awful aftertaste.
However, as more consumers are becoming educated on the subject of tequila, leading them to make better sipping choices (such as avoiding chemical filler-latent brands such as Cuervo Gold), the market continues to expand.
While there’s a tequila out there for everyone, finding the right one to drink is much easier than creating your own unique brand.
Lucky for you, we’ve condensed the complicated creation timeline into three simple steps to get you started:
Stage 1: Branding and Development
The first step in creating a new tequila is figuring out your brand identity, market, and how you’ll be developing the spirit.
Generally speaking, market research can take about six weeks or longer. It all depends on how you’re conducting your research. Either way, it takes time to learn about the product you’ll be pushing, the market that will be accepting it, and the brand identity you’ll create around it.
You’ll also need to figure out whether you’ll be building your own distillery or working with an already established distiller. There are currently 135 tequila distilleries in Mexico, which means finding the right one will take some time and consideration.
Stage 2: Legal Decisions and Processes
Once you’ve figured out how you’ll be differentiating yourself in the tequila market and who you’ll be partnering with, you’ll need to go through the legalities of creating a new tequila.
Tequila is geo-specific, much like champagne and scotch. It can only be made in certain specific municipalities in Mexico, which are within 5 different states: Jalisco, certain areas of Guanajuato, Tamaulipas, Michoacán, and Nayarit.
There are also specific guidelines you must follow if you’re planning to distribute your tequila throughout the United States or Canada.
It also must be approved by the Tequila Regulatory Council (TRC), which takes a minimum of two months for the product to be assessed for authentication and quality.
Stage 3: Production
It takes between eight and 20 years to produce a bottle of tequila. This because it requires a seven-step process:
- Harvesting (which takes between eight and 10 years)
- Cooking
- Shredding
- Fermenting (this usually takes between three and five days, but can sometimes take up to 12 days)
- Distilling
- Aging*
- Bottling
*The most important part of the production is understanding the aging process. There are three categories of Tequila—Blanco, reposado, and añejo, and they all depend on how long the spirit is left alone to age or, rest, usually in bourbon oak barrels.
Blanco tequila is clear, unaged tequila, although it can be left in the oak barrel for up to 60 days.
Reposado tequila will be slightly darker in color, usually caramel. It is “rested” for a minimum of two months and a maximum of 12 months.
Añejo tequila is rested for a minimum of one year and a maximum of three, deepening the color and flavor. Anything aged beyond three years is considered an extra añejo.
The amount of time it takes your tequila to reach its intended market depends entirely on how long it takes you to create a concrete brand identity, whether or not you partner with an established distiller, which categories you want to put out, and how long it takes your product to be approved by the council.
Of course, there’s a lot more involved in these condensed stages. When you’re ready to create your own private brand of tequila, our team is here to assist you. Contact us today to learn more about the high-quality and premium tequilas we can produce.