Lagrimas 'La Sabina' Plata Tequila Might Leave You Lachrymose

BOTTLE DETAILS

• DISTILLER: Tequila Cascahuin, NOM 1123
• MASH BILL: Blue Weber Agave 100%
• AGE: None
• YEAR: 2025
• PROOF: 92 (46% ABV)
• MSRP: $64.99
• BUY ONLINE: Lagrimas Bottle Shop

STEVE'S NOTES

SHARE WITH: All tequila drinkers, and especially people you want to introduce to great tequila by helping them bypass bad tequila. Introduce them to a gold standard product that'll keep them from ever trying Cuervo Gold.

WORTH THE PRICE: No. It's worth MORE than MSRP. It's that good. That anyone buys low-quality, additive laden celebrity-backed tequila that costs much more confounds me.

BOTTLE, BAR OR BUST: Bottle all day and all the way. You'll want every drop of this.

OVERALL: Students who chose French and German classes in high school may not know that Lagrimas means "tears." Whether that refers to tears of tequila clinging to the inside of your glass or tears you may shed over the quality of this spirit, I don't know. But the name, sounded out as "laah-gree-mas," is just fun to say out loud.

A quick overview harvested from the Lagrimas press release:

Lágrimas del Valle has launched its newest vintage, “La Sabina.” The Plata and Reposado expressions represent the fifth field harvested for the brand and the first to come from the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. Lágrimas del Valle is produced in collaboration at the legendary Tequila Cascahuin (in El Arenal, Jalisco, Mexico).

Cascahuin cooks agave for eight hours per day, then stopping until the following day, and repeating over the course of four days to create deep layers of flavor. The pinas are then crushed: 70% of them via roller mill and then fermented in stainless steel tanks; 30% are crushed using a Tahona, and fermented in open air wooden tanks.

Long story short, this is old school production. Now it's time for modern-day evaluating.

The nose is wide ranging and begins with roasted agave before moving to agua miel, then vinazes followed by freshly baked baguette and then off to tropical flowers and roasted green pepper. All of that rolls in atop a perpetual hum of petrichor mingled with peppermint.

That it's so rich on the palate likely attests Cascahuin's unique four-day cooking cycle described above. Mouthfeel is sturdy without dominating the palate. It's amazing how closely its flavors so closely mimic its aromas: petrichor and peppermint sprint to the fore along with cooked green pepper and deeply honeyed agua miel. Its 92 proof delivers an even yet appreciable tingle that finishes warmly as white pepper and dried flowers. Subsequent sips are reminiscent of fine still strength tequilas without the overproof punch.

Despite being one of the humblest distilleries in Jalisco, Cascahuin repeatedly turns out some of the finest tequilas made anywhere. That it produces so many brands for others and manages to make them distinct and unique is a testament to the skill of master distiller Salvador “Chava” Rosales Trejo and his team.

Don't make the hour-plus drive to the distillery in El Arenal hoping to find Lagrimas flights. Tastings at this distillery feature only Cascahuin-branded products (all of which are fantastic), so no agave estate-by-estate comparisons there. But tasting just this one release made from Guanajuato-grown agave makes me want to find others for comparison. What a marvelous spirit this is.

BRAND NOTES

Lagrimas La Sabina Plata is wildly unique with bright green herbs, and hints of palo santo, chalk, guava, and lightly roasted parsnip.

Disclaimer: Bourbon & Banter received a sample of this product from the brand for review. We appreciate their willingness to allow us to review their products with no strings attached. Thank you.