The Fine Craft of Making Patrón Tequila

Though Patrón tequila is one of the world’s most widely recognized spirits, many aren’t aware of the time it takes, and the steps required, to produce this exceptional product:

1. Patrón Tequila starts in the vivid blue agave fields in the state of Jalisco, generally six years before it ever makes it into the bottle —but sometimes as many as 10 years before they are perfectly ripe and ready for harvesting. A spirit cannot be considered authentic tequila unless it is made from Weber Blue Agave plants grown in designated areas of Mexico.
2. Once the agave has reached perfect ripeness, they’re harvested, the leaves are cut off, leaving only the heart of the agave to be cooked for about 79 hours in small brick ovens until they have the consistency of baked apples. This converts the plant starches into sugar.
3. When the agaves are cooked through and juicy, they’re shredded and then split up for two distillates: the contemporary roller mill and the ancient tahona, a production method used by only a handful of distilleries. For the roller mill, the agave is pressed through the mill, and then fermented in small wooden tanks, which provide the best environment for the yeast that is added. (The unique strain of yeast is a well-guarded secret by all tequila makers.) With the tahona, the baked agave is pressed in a round circular volcanic stone pit. Then, both the juice and the crushed agave fiber are placed into the fermentation tanks with water from our own deep well.
4. After fermentation, it’s on to distillation. At Patrón, we distill in small copper pot stills, designed by our master distiller Francisco Alcaraz.  
5. The distillates are then poured into wooden barrels for aging before being individually bottled by hand in the iconic Patrón bottle.