Tequila Severo

Distilleries, Mexico, Spirit Reviews, Tequila

Travel Distilled reviews Tequila Severo, from a family-owned tequila distillery, and releasing a blanco, reposado, anejo, and anejo cristalino tequilas.

Tequila Severo is made by Tequilera Don Roberto, a distillery that’s been in business since 1924. After almost 100 years, then, they should know a thing or two about making tequila. It’s still owned and operated within the founder’s family and is, surprisingly, one of very few tequila distilleries that is still Mexican-owned.

Where Is Tequila Severo?

Tequila Severo is made right in the center of the town of Tequila itself. You’ll find it tucked between a grocery store and a Circle K. That’s just how much these tequila distilleries are at the heart of their local communities.

Tequila Severo Bottles

Each bottle of Tequila Severo is hand-dated and numbered as the label is attached. This isn’t unique, I’ve seen it done in several places, but it’s a sign that production is still small-scale enough to allow this to happen. It also means work for local people, instead of handing over the labelling of bottles to a machine.

Tasting Tequila Severo

All four of Tequila Severo’s expressions are bottled at 40% ABV (80 proof) and are 100% blue agave tequilas.

Tequila Severo Plata

On the nose this is very smooth for a plata, and it smelled both warm and fresh, with vegetal, herbal, and spicy peppery aromas. Tasting it was more of the same, but a little more of the agave vegetable taste along with a bit of sourness, some citrus, and vanilla creaminess. It’s definitely a superior plata.

One puzzling thing is that it says it’s been rested in stainless steel containers for six months. I was under the impression that a plata or blanca tequila could only be rested for two months at the most… but hey, they’re the tequila makers, not me! This one sells in the USA for $49.99 for a 750ml bottle, which seems to me to be a fair price for what’s clearly a superior plata tequila.

Tequila Severo Reposado

This is the same plata tequila that has then been aged in American oak barrels for ten months. It hits you more on the nose than the plata did, with some vanilla, pepper, some agave, some citrus, and an oakiness from the barrels. So yes, it’s the plata and then some. This retails for $59.99, so it’s $10 more than the plata, which seems reasonable.

Tequila Severo Añejo

Guess what, this is $10 more than the reposado, at $69.99 a bottle. These guys are trying to keep it simple. And yes, we’re stepping up yet another notch. This has been aged for 18 months in American oak barrels, and what a difference an extra eight months simply sitting there in an oak barrel has made. Barrels are genius inventions!

Sniffing this it has a pleasing freshness, some oak, toffee/caramel, vanilla creaminess, and a hint of almond nuttiness. On the palate it’s vanilla creamy, more toffee/butterscotch, and you’re definitely into whiskey comparison territory here, with its dash of smokiness too.

Tequila Severo Añejo Cristalino

Yes, it’s $10 more for the anejo cristalino at $79.99 a bottle. It’s the same anejo tequila, aged for 18 months, but then it goes through a filtration process to produce this new style of tequila called cristalino. It’s intended to strip out the color but not the flavor, and my own personal jury is still out on this new style. Severo doesn’t say how they filter it, which isn’t surprising as distillers are mostly secretive about their filtration processes to create this new style of cristalino tequila.

In appearance, this one is crystal clear. Cristalinos do seem to shine more brightly than plata tequilas. The nose isn’t quite as complex as the original anejo, though it still has that freshness, with a zestiness about it. It’s fruity with citrus, and this time there’s definitely some apple in there. It’s interesting as it does taste different yet again from the anejo.

On the palate, it has the creaminess of the anejo, but is more vegetal as if getting back to the original raw plata from which all these other types derive.

Tequila Severo

Tasting these four tequilas back to back was an enjoyable experience to see (or rather, taste) how tequila develops as it goes through the aging process. I’d recommend any of these tequilas as being good buys in their price bracket, with my personal favorite being the anejo rather than the more expensive anejo cristalino. But then, that’s personal preference and everyone’s palate is different.