El Jimador Añejo Tequila

Rating: 12/23 N: It smells kind of sweet and a bit prickly. Some caramel, but still a suggestion of confectioner's sugar/. I get some mellow wood with a kind of funky, dry scent to it rather than the rich, bold character of a bourbon. There's nothing too exciting on the nose though. It's decently full and slightly rich, but there's sort of a chalky mineral sweetness coming through that stops it from being really impressive. P: This is substantially richer than the reposado with a big woody flavor to it. It has some of that same cedar, but what it really strikes me as is French oak. It's bitter with this bold woody presence, hints of creosote, mint, and a light mineral edge that contrasts. There are suggestions of citrus but they are faint this time and tend toward lemon a bit more than in the reposado. It has the same prickliness (but not harshness) and is still on the sweet side with kind of a light (not-artificial) caramel flavor. It tastes a bit like it's trying to be Fuentaseca, but isn't nearly as sophisticated. This tastes more like tequila than Cuervo Gold does, but perhaps it doesn't taste quite as genuine as El Jimador Reposado does. It tastes pretty decent with a solid balance, but it isn't super complex and it doesn't taste a whole lot like what I would recognize as tequila. It's quite sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. F: The French oak lingers along with some minerality and maybe light suggestions of agave. There's nothing here that really strongly suggests tequila. Mostly, it tastes like an unobjectionable, light spirit aged in French oak long enough to cover up its character, but not long enough to taste super woody. I'm pretty torn on this one. I simultaneously kind of enjoy it but am put off by it. It's clearly better than the reposado by a solid margin and it's cheap, so for throwing in margaritas or something, I cannot object to this. It does remind me a bit of Gran Centenario Reposado, though with less of a musty paper flavor and more of that odd prickly orange whatever it is. The two seem fairly similar in quality though. Maybe I was a tad harsh in my last tasting of the Reposado giving it a 10 rather than an 11. This tastes fine enough to me. Compared with other tequilas, this seems like it's in the 11 to 14 range. I'm really pretty much deciding between a 12 and a 13 at this point. I'm leaning a tad toward a 12, but I'm not sure yet. This is no El Mayor Anejo, which is particularly meaningful because even that is a pretty mediocre tequila. Still, this is certainly not bad. I was briefly thinking that I might go for 13, but I think I need to land on 12 for this.

Rating: 9/23 This bottle has been down to the last pour for months, so this may not be a representative tasting. N: Sweet, minerals, confectioner's sugar. Faint stewed agave with caramel bordering on banana. This smells concerning. P: Super smooth. Some spices (cinnamon, ginger, a bit of some sort of pepper). Some earth is here that borders on smoke. Less aggressive sweetness and more fullness than I'd expected. Still, I get some confectioner's sugar coating my tongue. A hint of lime, but it's really more of a suggestion. Lots of minerals, as if this was made with hard water. Faint waxiness. Some caramel with a hint of banana to it. There is some nice stewed agave flavor in here, but it often gets buried. F: Minerals scented with stewed agave. A bit of that banana caramel. Some earthy bitterness at points. Confectioner's sugar coating my tongue. - Conclusion - Why did I at one point think this was good? It has tons of minerals and confectioner's sugar. I would have guessed that this was a mixto. This isn't the worst thing ever, but it's a hard pass. A 12 certainly isn't in sight here. I think the highest I could go is a 9 - or just maybe a 10. A 6 seems too harsh, so it's going to be a 7 to 9. I'm torn between an 8 and a 9. I'll give it the 9.

It smells sweet, but not super strong. There are some caramel notes and some nice light fruity ones. Along with a bit of orange blossom, vanilla, and white pepper. The palate is sweet with a bit more of an artificial alcohol and too-young caramel flavor than I'd like. It gradually becomes richer with more orange peel coming out. It has a little bit of that young bourbon flavor, but the rich vanilla, bit of milk chocolate, and viscous mouthfeel really help. This is a big step up over the reposado, though it tastes a bit like it's trying to chest and isn't actually all that amazing. It would be great in margaritas though. Like, great in a Cadillac. The floral and tropical fruit notes come together a bit to counterbalance the impression of youth. The flavor is classic añejo tequila: young bourbon with more interesting flavors and less of a sickly sweetness. The reposado is lighter wish more white pepper. It isn't bad by any means, but it's too light. The sweet caramel and vanilla here are clearly better than anything in the reposado, which in turn just edges out the Blanco. Although this has a much more butterscotchy flavor than Herradura Reposado, they can go toe-to-toe nicely.

Aromatic robust smokey agave citrus vanilla oak cinnamon and brown sugar nose, like an early summer campfire and the graham crackers are coming out, a smooth sweet agave body, light fruitiness of cherries, with sweet vanilla and caramel which develops into cinnamon and brown sugar, light citrus, rich, oily, with a slight umami texture, a silky smooth warm blanket mouthfeel, thick and viscous, with a smooth agave, vanilla, cherries, and oak finish. Satisfying, smooth, easily sipped and enjoyed. Tasted neat.

I’m a bourbon “study”, had almost every bourbon currently available. I’ve used el jimador reposado for margs for years, it’s good. But, now I’m jumping into sipping tequila neat and this is a great way to start. Although, I could easily make an excellent old fashioned or Manhattan with this anejo. Already a fan!

I think this is harsher than their Repo, which is generally not how more age should work. And I don’t mean smokier or oakier—I mean it bites you back, and not in a good way. It’ll do in a pinch for a mixed drink, but in general there are better balanced things out there.