First-Hand Feedback

Well, it's been quite a day. We finally released our insanely-old tequila blend to the masses and they responded by purchasing all 200 available bottles available within four hours. CRAZY!

Needless to say, it's still on the site because I've added another 100 bottles into the system. We can make as many as 400 bottles of this Fuenteseca Extra Añejo, but I didn't want to order more than we needed. The question our consumers are asking right now, however, is: do I need to get one of these before they sell out?

Good question. Here's my honest to truth answer:

I know it's difficult to take the word of the guy who's job it is to sell you the booze, so I'm going to offer up a few different experiences from the day in the hope that it offers some guidance.

Greg St. Clair is our Italian wine buyer. He doesn't ever get excited about anything booze related, especially enough to actually swallow the sample he's tasting. Usually it's spit no matter what. I offered Greg a sip of the new Fuenteseca blend today (from the tiny bit I had left) and he went ballistic. "This is fucking delicious!" he exclaimed. "I actually swallowed it! And I don't drink anything these days," he went on to add. Greg then went on to repeat this accolade to the rest of our Redwood City staff. "What the hell got into Greg?" people asked me. "He tried the new tequila," I replied.

I also managed to pass of a sample to two of my best spirits customers, Adam and Thorpe, who tasted with two very solemn countenances. "That shit is amazing," they said. "You're not going to have any problem selling that stuff." Delicious was the verdict. I was batting 1.000 so far.

Jeff Garneau, our Bordeaux specialist, was also transfixed, but when I asked him if he liked it he answered, "There's absolutely no context for this. Sure, it tastes good, but what can I compare it to?" Great point. What do you compare a blend of 4, 7, 11, 14, 18, and 21 year old tequilas to? There's never been a tequila on the market like this before, so it's tough to guage where it ranks among the best

-David Driscoll