Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco

Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco is made at the Tanteo Tequila distillery, owned by a cooperative of agave farmers in Juanacatlán in Jalisco, Mexico.

The distillery’s name is actually NOM 1551 but it’s known for its Tanteo Tequila range, and now for this new brand of Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco. Espero means both ‘I hope’ and ‘I wait’, but the distillery says their meaning is the ‘I hope’ one. The tequila’s unusual in that it’s made not so much for consumers as for bars and restaurants.

The aim is to produce a quality tequila that can be served neat and used in cocktails, and at an affordable price for use, basically, as a house tequila. But a quality tequila at an affordable price? Why shouldn’t consumers be interested too?

Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco

One clue that the tequila is aimed more at the trade is that the bottle and labelling are very simple. It’s not intended to look stylish on the shelves of the home bar, and isn’t a bottle to impress your friends with. It’s plain and simple, and the bottle is also a 1-liter bottle rather than the usual 750ml, so that also helps keep costs down and makes it last longer, both helpful features in a busy bar.

Tanteo Tequila

Tanteo’s tequilas have been very highly regarded and its success has been good news for the town of Juanacatlán, where it’s made. Juanacatlán is about a 45-minute drive south-east of Guadalajara, Jalisco’s capital, but having a successful industry in the town means that locals don’t have to commute into the city but can find jobs locally.

It means that young mothers with families, whose husbands may work in Guadalajara, can find their own jobs locally to being in a much-needed second income. Having toured several towns and distilleries in Jalisco, I know that this isn’t merely some kind of feel-good factor intended to create a positive image for the brand. In many small towns the tequila distillery is the main employer, and they look after their workers well.

The fact that NOM 1551 is also a cooperative owned by the agave farmers themselves and not by a huge foreign corporation is also good news for the local economy and local people.

Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco

So what of the tequila itself? It’s a 100% blue agave tequila, with the agave baked in brick ovens, and the tequila is bottled at a conventional 40% ABV (80 proof).

As I said, the bottle is plain and simple, but the tequila inside it is bright and shiny when it’s poured. On the nose this blanco is very strong on the smoky agave, herbal and green earthy smells, the basics of tequila. In other words, it smells like a good blanco should. There’s some citrus freshness in there too, and some spiciness, but if you want to know what a cooked agave smells like, you’ll get it here.

The same goes for the palate. Like the bottle, it isn’t subtle, and like the nose, it’s heavy on the earthy agave tastes. There’s a little more pepper spice in the mouth, and some vanilla creaminess in the background. It also has a lovely, rich and silky mouth-feel.

In short, given that it sells for around $30 for a 1-liter bottle, this should do exactly what it sets out to do and appeal to anyone (bar or consumer) who wants a good, honest tequila at an affordable price. It’s a pleasure to sip it neat but at that price you also feel you don’t mind throwing it into a cocktail.

Buying Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco

Tanteo Espero Tequila Blanco has a recommended price of $29.99 for a 1-liter bottle and is widely available across the USA. I definitely recommend you look for it at your local liquor store or grocery store.