July 27, 2018 sayulitablog 0Comment

The Tequila Experience Sayulita first began in 2017, and now is a thriving professional tequila tasting service which arranges private tastings in Sayulita for any occasion for groups or even individuals. The Tequila Experience Sayulita is unique because it only uses high-quality, artisanal, 100% Blue Agave tequila produced from small, local manufacturers, so you get to taste tequilas that are not only rich and luxurious, but absolutely delicious! Geovani, the leader and owner of Tequila Experience Sayulita is incredibly friendly, fun, knowledgeable, and makes his guests feel comfortable and at ease. During the Tequila Experience Sayulita, Geovani will arrange to come to you to do the tasting, whether it be at your vacation rental or home, and he will bring all the necessary items; all you have to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the experience! Also, visitors can go to Rancho Mi Chaparrita to do the tastings, perhaps after experiencing a zipline or other fun activity at the Rancho.

After working in the tequila industry for many years giving commercial tequila tastings at luxury hotels in Jalisco and the Nayarit region, Geovani decided to create the Tequila Experience Sayulita in order to support the small local families that produce 100% organic / artisanal tequila. What is most amazing about the Tequila Experience Sayulita is that Geovani offers the experience totally free! That’s right— you do not have to pay for the tasting at all, and he does not pressure his clients to buy any of the bottles after the tasting (although they are all so good you are going to want to! I bought two bottles after our tasting—an amazing chocolate flavored tequila, and tequila flavored with passion fruit. So delicious!) Considering Geovani uses super high-end, quality, artisanal tequila, it is quite incredible that he does the tastings with no charge. Additionally, the fact that he comes to your location and caters to you and your group’s needs is even more impressive; he makes the whole experience feel very VIP. Whether you are celebrating something special like a birthday, anniversary, reunion, or bachelorette party, or you just want a fun activity to try for the day, the Tequila Experience Sayulita is the perfect activity for any occasion.

For our Tequila Experience Sayulita, Geovani came to our home; he set up his table with bottles and special tasting glasses, and began the experience by first explaining where tequila comes from and how it is made. Geovani then taught us how to use our senses when tasting the tequila; he taught us how to properly look at and smell a tequila, and even how to sip it and use your breathing to get the most out of the flavor. He then taught us different ways of how to recognize if a tequila is a good quality tequila or not. For example, he showed us that if place a drop of high-end tequila in your palm, it feels oily and dries very quickly; almost like coconut oil. This is because you are getting purely the oil from the Agave—proof that the tequila is well made. With cheaper or less-quality tequilas, your palms will feel sticky and wet. Furthermore, Geovani taught us that when you swish tequila around in a glass, a good-quality tequila will have tears or legs that drip down the glass very slowly, while in contrast, cheaper or lesser-quality tequilas will run down very quickly.  These are just some of the examples of what Geovani teaches you during the Tequila Experience Sayulita; it is so much more than just sipping on tequila (although that is an added perk!)

All in all, for our tasting we got to try seven different tequilas of the Amecatl brand. I have to admit I was somewhat hesitant at first; my experience with tequila has been mostly college memories of quickly taking shots and using a lime to cancel out the horrible alcohol flavor. So when I knew we’d be sipping slowly on tequila with no lime or anything, I was worried. However, I realized that with good tequilas, you don’t need any of that; they are meant to be enjoyed so that you can sip on them without limes or salt or anything to take away from the flavor.

We started with a chocolate flavored tequila that was absolutely amazing; it was thick and syrupy and tasted exactly like melted chocolate! It would be wonderful for desserts or to put over some vanilla ice-cream. We also got to try an almond flavored tequila and a passion fruit flavored tequila. Then we moved on to try a blanco, a reposado, and finally two different anejos. Each flavor was amazing and top notch. With each tasting we did a different toast which made it even more fun and like a bonding experience. Furthermore, throughout the whole Tequila Experience Sayulita, I noticed that Geovani repeatedly referred to us as “family” when directing us on what to taste next, and it didn’t feel forced or cheesy at all; this is simply how Geovani treats his guests— like family.

By the end of our experience, we left feeling like tequila experts! We had a wonderful time and loved everything we got to taste. Even though Geovani doesn’t pressure his clients to purchase any bottles, everyone in our group ended up taking home a bottle or two. The tequila really sells itself!

I understand now that the Tequila Experience Sayulita is called an “experience” for a reason—it is more than just drinking tequila; it is a didactic, educational, fun, and unforgettable experience that you absolutely must try!

Written by: Aanya Sheikh-Taheri

Photos by: Dorsett Photography