Give Campari America A Shot

Tequila fans looking forward to El Portal’s Annual Grand Fiesta Tequila Tasting have another reason to get excited about – Campari America’s participation at the event.

On Thursday, September 12, from 5:30 pm onwards, El Portal will be hosting a Tequila Tasting with many premium tequila vendors on hand. One of these vendors is award winning tequila maker, Campari America.

Chantal Leurs-Beeson, Southern California Channel Manager at Campari America, says that the company has been working with El Portal for over a year now, having participated in last year’s tequila tasting event as well.

“I have been working with El Portal for a little bit over a year now. Campari America are the owners of Tequila brands such as Cabo Wabo Tequila and Espolon Tequila. We work with them on a yearly basis to talk about our different tequilas,” says Leurs-Beeson.

Cabo Wabo is one of the more popular tequilas of Campari America, and what sets it apart from other tequilas, according to Leurs-Beeson, is “that it tastes like good clean tequila, that you can taste the agave in. It’s not over-processed so I think that really stands out, where you can either drink it straight or you put in within the cocktail.”

Cabo Wabo and Espolon Tequila’s popularity is not just among consumers, but among international critics and professional tasters as well. Leurs-Beeson tells us that Cabo Wabo won the following in 2010:

– Gold medal for Anejo in the Beverage Tasting Institue

– Gold Medal at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge

– Four awards for the Anejo for the Reposado

– Spirits Journal Best Tequila in the World for Reposado

– Best Tasting Institute Gold Medal at the San Francisco Series Competition

– Gold medal at the Opening Spirits Challenge

– For Blanco, two silver medals

To understand the tequila terminologies, “Blanco” means “white” and it means the tequila was stored immediately after distillation, or aged for less than two months. “Joven” or “young” is usually a mixto, rarely 100% agave, with added coloring. “Reposado” or “rested” means the tequila has been aged for at least two months, but less than a year in any sized barrels. “Anejo” or “aged” is stored for a minimum of one year, but less than three years in small oak barrels. “Extra Anejo” or “extra aged” is aged for a minimum of three years in oak barrels.

For Espolon, Leurs-Beeson continues, it comes in a unique bottle that instantly separates it from the others, with the label made by a Mexican heritage artist.

“For the Espolon Tequila, we were awarded the Best Tequila Factory in Mexico by the School of Architects and Engineer in Jalisco. In 2010, the Blanco won 94 points for the International Review of Spirits, and that was the gold recipient. It’s it’s clean, pure and elegant. We also won the gold medal for the Reposado and we have 93 points from that one,” adds Leurs-Beeson.

The point system, by the way, is out of a hundred points. Giving the Espolon top marks, good enough for class honors.

The reason for the clean tasting tequilas that Campari America is known for is due to its use of 100% all natural ingredients, as well as having a green distillery.

If you want to see what the hype is all about, check out Campari America at the Annual El Portal Tequila Tasting event, and have a taste for yourself.

Tickets will be sold at the door for $35 per person, while advance buyers can get tickets for $30 up to September 11th.

For reservations, call (626) 795-8553.

To find out more about Campari America, visit http://www.campariamerica.com. To learn more about El Portal’s Tequila Tasting event, you can visit www.elportalrestaurant.com for more information.