Here Are The Highest Scoring Añejo Tequilas From The Ultimate Spirits Challenge
We’ve already run through the highest-scoring bottles of bourbon from this year’s Ultimate Spirits Challenge and now we’re fixing our gaze on the highest scoring añejo tequilas. The judges at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge (USC) have been judging the world’s best spirits for 10 years and they take booze seriously. So seriously, in fact, that they didn’t let a global pandemic stop them from convening over two full months at a state of the art tasting facility in Hawthorne, New York, to sample booze from over 45-spirit producing nations.The result of all that spirits tasting is a carefully curated list of the best spirits in any given category, and a wonderful resource for anyone blindly buying bottles of alcohol. Below, we’ve collected the top 10 scoring añejo tequilas and included tasting notes from the USC or the bottlers themselves. Before we dive into the list, we should mention that this rundown doesn’t include the highest-scoring Añejo, 818. Winner of the USC’s highest honor, the Chairman’s Trophy, 818 isn’t available to purchase in the states and has absolutely no online presence. According to the USC, 818 Añejo has “earthy aromas of pine and yellow fruits mixed with vanilla. Sweet on the palate with brown sugar, vanilla syrup, and spicy cinnamon… Hints of roasted agave come through on the long spicy-sweet finish.”
But since you’re probably not getting offered a sip of that elixir anytime soon, here are the highest-scoring Añejo Tequilas from the Ultimate Spirits Challenge that you actually can track down.