This tequila was absconded from a wedding alongside a bottle of Campari that is 100%, not Campari as it’s not red and smells like death. Okay, it was a gift, but ‘absconded from a wedding’ is our new album name. The tequila itself was thankfully not a disaster to review, and in some respects is well-liked.
This is sort of a nice light and breezy fun summertime tequila with only a few hints that allude to its cheapness. That cheapness though is at least matched by the number of dollars spent which when combined with the other factors turn this into something we recommend. (It’s been a while)
What they Say: “Distilled and bottled by Compania Tequilera de Arandas S.A. de C.V. Rancho Palos Colorados, Arandas, Kalisco, Mexico. R.F.C. TAR-00217-LR2 www.elcharrotequila.com www.tequileradearandas.com”
Editor’s Note: (Bottling info and a dead website)
Taste: 7.0 – You get a bit of the agave, a bit of sugar, and then this sort of warmer? agave flavor. It’s overall quite nice, but a bit too dainty, especially when paired with the aftertaste.
Aftertaste: 4.5 – It’s got a sort of minty aftertaste to it leaving almost like a bizarro toothpaste. Overall it’s not bad, just not ideal in any way.
Burn/Smooth: 4.5 – That is not really smooth. It’s light, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a burning there. It does give some nice warmth though.
Aroma: 5.0 – It’s light and refreshing, but there’s something else there. Yes, the whiff of true low tier booze is not missing here, and it’s so much poorer for it has lost all its points.
Honesty: 6.5 – Well there’s no lies there at least, well except of course the websites which are listed as under construction – a thing we didn’t think was even done anymore in the year of 2019. (Just have the old site and build a staging site and deal with it.) Overall they have some good points, and nothing to detract or to further augment.
Mixability: 6.5
W/ Rocks: 6.0 – It shaves off the rough edges a bit, but overall it’s just not a nice sipping tequila.
Margarita: 7.5 – It’s damn fine in a margarita, just the right amount of that agave and mint flavor shines in this.
Tequila Sunrise: 6.5 – Okay that’s fairly good. No complaints here.
Value: 7.0 – That is actually on the cheaper side for the strength in cocktails this has. Doubtful to replace the more popular 1800, but if honest this is better in a marg.
Google Shop Average: $16
Website: http://elcharrotequila.com/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 6.5
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Metric Score: 41/70 |+| Metric Average: 5.86 |+| Reviewer Average: 6.5
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Final Thoughts: We’ve decided to change our minds about using the word absconded, this was a gift in more ways than one, and while we’re out of the premade Margarita mix we use in reviews for consistency – we thankfully have the ability to go fresh, because damn this will be a nice, but short addition to the lounge.
Not being a person of wealth I quite often purchase El Charro and find it to be quite palatable. Being a hillbilly, and perhaps prone to alcoholism, I drink it straight from the bottle chased by a sip of Jose Cuervo Margarita Mix.
My hillbilly pals and I love to pass a bottle of El Charro around when we are enjoying barbecued groundhog sandwiches at one of our get-togethers.