La Gritona Reposado Tequila

La Gritona Reposado is a subtle and distinctive 100% blue agave tequila distilled by Melly Barajas at her small distillery (NOM 1533) in Valle de Guadalupe in the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico. The distillery begins with 9-10 year old mature agave grown in the iron-rich red soil of the Jalisco highlands that has been cultivated at the height of it’s sugar production and is put into ovens within 24 hours of being cut.

The agave is steam cooked in two thick-walled earthen ovens for 24 hours and then allowed to rest for another 24 hours before crushing. The collected liquid is naturally fermented in open steel vats at a rate that is dictated by the local air temperature. Once it starts to swim, the company distills their nascent silver twice. They rest the distilled silver in reused American whiskey barrels (Jack Daniels) for 8 months before filtering and bottling.

They char their barrels very lightly if necessary and allow the barrels to be used for other rested tequilas prior to the resting period so that the residual oak, the residual whiskey, and the leached color from both can be as stunted as possible while the reposado ages. The agave is crushed with steel shredders after cooking and the liquid is distilled in steel stills. Every step of production takes place under one roof and the facility is overseen by a small staff of local women that work each process from start to finish.

La Gritona currently bottles an average of 12,500 liters per batch. All of the agave remnants that are left over after production are given to local farmers to use as cattle feed. The bottles are hand blown with recycled Mexican glass in the Guadalajara municipality of Tonolá, an hour away from the distillery.

80 Proof/40% ABV - 700ml