Santana’s Casa Noble Tequila is now in the Philippines

With the traceable influence of Mexico in the country’s cultural fiber (think of the Manila-Acapulco trade during the Spanish colonial era), it’s small wonder that Filipinos celebrate Cinco de Mayo—or at least use the date as a warrant to munch nachos and tacos, or drown in Mexico’s inebriating gift to the world: tequila.

Tequila drinker, fashion model, and now, Casa Noble brand ambassador, Borgy Manotoc says that despite the notoriety of tequila among younger drinkers, it’s still one of the world’s best alcoholic beverages. He says, ”Tequila’s got a very bad rep sometimes because everyone sees it as just a shot of alcohol and some young people have a bad experience because they say it’s a little bit difficult [to drink].

“But I think when they understand the product and they understand the flavor of the tequila, they will start to really appreciate the taste.” He also said that tequila has a “flowery” taste that people will only appreciate once they start to get acquainted with the said drink.

Tequila is an alcoholic drink produced from blue agave plants growing at the culturally-rich state of Jalisco in Mexico. Aside from drinking it straight or served on a shot glass rimmed with salt with a slice of lime, it is also mixed with orange liqueur, lemon and lime juice to make famous margarita.

So how is tequila made?

These blue agave plants take more than a decade to fully mature and when they do, they are taken out of the grown and their leaves removed until the core or piña is left. Next, they are taken to the distillery and cut before they are loaded into special furnaces to roast the picas. After cooking them for about thirty-six hours, the cooked cores are shredded and the juice is extracted, which will be fermented for five days.

After fermentation, the tequila is distilled twice, or thrice in other distillers, to produce the nice aroma of the blue agave plant and at the same time, for the tequila acquire its pure taste. While most of tequilas are ready after distillation, some of them are aged for two months to obtain the golden color. However, distillers such as Casa Noble age some of their tequilas for one year, while others are aged up to five years, which makes it the oldest tequila in the market.

At a recent product launch of Casa Noble held at the Opus Lounge in Resorts World, Manila, tequila aficionados gathered together to enjoy shots of the premium drink. Borgy, who was one of the event’s co-hosts, says, “Casa Noble is all about the product. There are no shortcuts in the production. Everything is done to the highest quality. This is the same family that’s making tequila and growing agave plants from the same place for 300 years, so they have really perfected their craft in a way that nobody else has done.”

Interestingly, Carlos Santana, a Mexican, multiple Grammy Award-winner, and iconic Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member, has joined the Board of Casa Noble and is now one of the owners of the brand.

Borgy continues, “It is the only tequila in the world that is [certified] USDA organic. It means that on the entire property that produces the product, there are no chemicals used, no pesticide, and even vehicles that come in should have their tires sprayed so they don’t pollute the property.”

Casa Noble is brought to the Philippines by Calvo Imports, Inc., owned by the same people that brought Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC). Watch PXC at AKTV, TV5′s sports and lifestyle channel.