Tasting Notes: Jose Cuervo launches 250 Aniversario in New York City

"Ugly Betty" co-star Ana Ortiz savors the unique Jose Cuervo 250 Aniversario, launched
November 2nd at the Chelsea Art Museum in New York City.
Image: Robert Haynes-Peterson.

ON NOVEMBER 2ND, exactly 250 years after Don Jose Antonio de Cuervo received a Spanish land grant to harvest agave in the Tequila region of Mexico, Jose Cuervo hosted a launch party for its exclusive, limited edition Jose Cuervo 250 Aniversario tequila at the Chelsea Art Museum. Only 495 of the $2,250 bottles (yes, you read that price tag correctly) were produced, and when they're gone, they're gone (though Jose Cuervo is considering producing a similar high-end tequila in the future). (SEE SLIDESHOW BELOW FOR MORE IMAGES FROM THE EVENT)

I was fortunate enough to try the coveted Cuervo 250 twice: First in the confines of a library-like conference room, where the already-poured Extra Anejo (extra-aged) tequila filled the tiny space with its notes of chocolate, leather and pepper. And again that evening at the launch party in an open, social environment. In both cases, the complexities of the tequila (properly poured into Reidel "caballito" tequila glass) develop over time as the spirit sits, aerating.

Franz Hajnal, the Maestro Tequilero who headed up this special project, walks guests through the tasting, which insists uses all five senses ("The ears are only for listening, not for tasting," he jokes). The color is a deep amber, darker even than Cuervo's Reserva de la Familia extra anejo tequila, with an intense viscosity. The nose matures, exhibiting first cinnamon, vanilla, leather and pepper. Sitting in the glass for a few minutes, and swirling, you find tropical fruits, chocolate and an earthy musk tone that is downright sensual. "That growing complexity is very representative of all the years in the cask," Hajnal tells me.

On the mouth, the experience is unlike any other Extra Anejo I've tried (and I've tried a few): It begins full, sweet, warm and round. Midway through, you get a peppery bite, followed by a long, long mineral grassy finish reminiscent of the volcanic terroir in which Cuervo's agave grows. Missing are many of the wood and smoke tones you find in more traditional Extra Anejos like Partida Elegante or Don Julio Real. Instead you taste, very intensely, the agave notes and grass tones of, surprise, tequila.

"This is the unique process we have done to create this special tequila," says Hajnal. He and his team began first by growing agave specifically for the project on the original plot that Don Jose Antonio received from the King. They tended it carefully, slow cooking it in stone ovens for up to 80 hours (twice the usual cooking time), and blended it with well water specially filtered to remove any over-powering flavors. Hajnal then selected reserva blanco tequilas from the company's archival holdings and blended them ("10, 15, 20 years old; some go back as far as 80 and 100 years old"). Both the new tequila and the reservas were (separately) aged for 3 years in New American Oak barrels (as opposed to the used bourbon barrels often employed for aging tequila). The best of the reservas and the "new" Extra Anejo were then blended and casked again in Spanish Sherry barrels for 10 months. The result is a complex flavor profile like nothing I've come across, while still holding to the integrity of the concept of tequila.

At the launch event, everyone (including "Ugly Betty" co-star Ana Ortiz)  had the opportunity to sample the 250 Aniversario alongside Jose Cuervo's "regular" (and highly lauded) Reserva de la Familia Extra Anejo. It was a unique opportunity to compare and contrast the two. Reserva de la Familia (about $120) is a very popular extra-aged tequila and well respected. The 250 Aniversario is in its own league. Whether it's worth $2,250 is something you must decide for yourself. But any opportunity you have to at least taste this before it's gone, you should. (The presentation boxes come with locks, so don't expect to stumble on a bottle unattended!)

"The liquid in this bottle is the history and heritage of Jose Cuervo and Mexico," says Hajnal. "There was a Jose Cuervo before there was a Mexico. When you're drinking the Aniversario, you're drinking more than 100 years of history."

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