Tequila

The Best Luxury Tequila Brands

We round up the best luxury tequila brands and break down each type of tequila they produce, so you can pick the right bottle.

By 

Emily Singer

 |  April 15, 2024

With so many brands to choose from, it is important to know about their different production processes, company values, and what kind of tequila they have to offer. Although production methods can differ, most high-end tequila companies use traditional methods of processing. It starts with picking the highest-quality sourced agave plant and e cooking it (typically in stone ovens) to convert the starches into sugars. Then comes the extraction process, distillation, fermentation, cooking, and filtration, followed by aging, a crucial step where the batch’s unique and distinct flavor is cultivated, then blending and bottling. The traditional tequila-making process is laborious, artisanal, and can be quite complicated. Though, it is worth it when the result is a beautiful bottle of tequila. 

Here are ten of the most well-respected and reliable tequila companies. Each of our selected brands has a unique story, method of creation, and tasteful collections of sipping tequila.

The Best Luxury Tequila Brands

Casamigos

Although it’s been around for less than a decade, Casamigos quickly became the luxury tequila of choice for many discerning drinkers. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle even served it at their wedding after-party. Of course, it helps that its founders are George Clooney and Rande Gerber, but A-list owners alone don’t make a luxury tequila. All of the bottles – blanco, reposado, añejo, and mezcal – come from the highlands of Jalisco.

Clase Azul

Clase Azul is instantly recognizable due to its gorgeous ceramic bottles. Artists hand-paint and hand-sculpt the casing in Santa María Canchesda. Each bottle of Clase Azul tequila ages for a minimum of eight months in small oak barrels. Just as the tannins in wine barrels impart flavor nuances to each bottle of wine, the same is true for barrel-aged tequila. Its signature blend is the Clase Azul Reposado Tequila, made of 100% blue Weber agave, which you can enjoy neat or on the rocks. 

Qui

Although it’s hard to believe, aged luxury tequila wasn’t always available in the U.S. In the 1990s, Qui’s founder, Medhat, set out to change that. His production follows traditional methods but uses a proprietary method to filter and refine its extra añejo tequilas, an expression with a lengthier aging process than classic añejo. It makes two tequilas, the world’s first Platinum Extra-Añejo Tequila and Select Extra Añejo Tequila. The extra añejo tequila ages for a staggering 12 years in Tennessee whiskey and French Bordeaux casks, and the platinum extra añejo ages for over three and a half years in American whiskey and French Bordeaux barrels. The long aging periods and special filtration make these some of the most complex and smooth luxury tequilas on the market. 

Casa Dragones

The Casa Dragones is one of the first ultra-premium sipping tequilas. It was founded by Bertha González Nieves, the first woman to be called a Maestra Tequilera by the Academia Mexicana de Catadores de Tequila. Crafted from 100% blue agave, it offers three types of luxury tequila: blanco, añejo, and joven. The Casa Dragones Joven Tequila is quite unusual. This small-batch tequila blends silver and extra-aged tequila that is aged in American oak barrels. To properly enjoy, use one of our expertly selected tequila glasses.

Supremo 

This luxury tequila brand uses a family recipe handed down from generation to generation. It was created in 1840 by one of the first Casa Tequileras, the Ruiz Family, and started as simply being shared during events with close family and friends. Since then, it has become a flourishing and premium tequila company, specializing in extra añejo. The Extra Añejo Tesoro Edition rests in American oak barrels for 48 months and then in port casks, while its Black Edition ages an additional 48 months in old distillery wooden tanks. Both bottles are smooth and easy to sip and have a hint of sweetness alongside distinct aromas and flavors of cooked agave. 

Herradura

Herradura dates all the way back to 1870 and recently celebrated 150 years of tequila making. Located at Hacienda San José del Refugio, it is the last tequila-producing hacienda in the world. Herradura is responsible for creating the first-ever reposado and extra añejo tequila. Using the finest 100% blue agave, Herradura doesn’t cut any corners, naturally fermenting and maturing its tequila for 14 months. It offer various types of tequila, each with its own unique flavor and tone. The finest expression they market is the Selección Suprema de Herradura — the very first extra añejo expression in the world. It rests for 49 months in American white oak barrels until it ages to perfection.

Dos Artes

Tequila Dos Artes is encased in magnificent hand-painted ceramic bottles, all with different intricate and beautiful designs. What comes inside of these bottles is just as lovely. The Dos Artes Blanco Tequila uses mature, 100% blue agave from Jalisco. It is smooth on the palate and has the essence of herbs, sweet apples, and agave. The añejo rests in both French oak and white American oak barrels, creating its delicate toasted oak aroma. Lastly, the Reserva Especial bottle, which is matured for five years, is a collector’s favorite. These beautiful sipping tequilas are a staple of quality and presentation.

Casa Noble

The Casa Noble tequila is a seven-generation endeavor led by founder and Maestro Tequilero Jose “Pepe” Hermosillo. Beginning in the late 1700s in Jalisco and a leading tequila brand today, Casa Noble produces its tequila with great integrity, only using estate-grown agaves cooked in traditional stone ovens and then naturally fermented and distilled three times over. Casa Noble offers a wide variety of tequilas, including a blanco, reposado, añejo, joven, single-barrel extra añejo, and single-barrel reposado. Casa Noble has a bottle for every type of tequila drinker, each with its own sweet finish and bite. 

Fortaleza

Though Tequila Fortaleza was only launched in 2005, with “125 years of tradition,” this family-run business has had roots in the history of tequila-making for quite some time. Its goal is to keep with tradition and make the best tequila, using the highest quality agave. The bottles are handblown in Mexico and have a classic and edgy look. Fortaleza offers bottles of blanco, reposado, añejo, and a Still Strength Blanco, each with its own distinct aroma and flavor. These blends are processed the old-fashioned way, as tequila was made 150 years ago with old-world machinery. 

Penta Tequila

A uniquely crafted, small-batch tequila, Penta Tequila fuses the art of winemaking with the practices of traditional tequila-making. The 100% blue agave, primarily sourced from the highlands of Jalisco, gives each bottle a tasteful and artisanal flavor profile. Penta filters its Diamante Reposado Cristalino with charcoal to take out the barrel-aged color, which is why it had the color of blanco, but the smooth flavor profile of a classic reposado. The Penta Reposado has bright floral notes and a sweet bite. The Penta Añejo rests for an average of 14 months, giving it its rich golden-brown color and smooth finish.

Don Julio Tequila

Luxury tequila brand Don Julio González-Frausto Estrada opened his first distillery in 1947 at the tender age of 17. He used his experience as a farmhand to grow high-quality agave plants before slow-roasting them for 72-hour cycles. After years of experimentation, he mastered his craft and created a luxury blend. Today, the brand is best known for its iconic luxury tequila Don Julio 1942, an amber-colored añejo with warm oak and vanilla flavors created in tribute to the founder. But, the company has a wide range of tequilas, including Don Julio Blanco Tequila; it has hints of citrus and black pepper and comes in a shorter, rounded bottle. 

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