Sparkle Donkey Tequila Reposado

Sparkle Donkey Tequila Reposado is a 100% Agave and produced at Destiladora del Valle de Tequila, in the heart of Tequila, Jalisco, Mexico. Sparkle Donkey Reposado is aged 8 months in used American oak. The oak barrels from Kentucky are brought across the border and filled within 24 hours so they stay wet. If you're a bourbon fan, you're already familiar with the sweet vanilla odor and taste you get from an aged bourbon.

The distillery is in the town of Tequila (a Lowland region, often called "the valley"), however 50% of the Agave piñas are harvested in Arandas (a Highland region, called "Los Altos"). The red clay soil and elevation of the highland region produce a tequila that's different than those grown in the rich volcanic earth of the valley or lowlands. In the highland area you have different minerals, cooler nights and more rain, so highlands agave tends to grow larger and mature more slowly producing sweeter, fruity tequila, although some believe it can be sometimes lacking in character. Lowland agave is usually drier, rounder and has more earthy, vegetal and woody flavors. Sparkle Donkey believes a blend is the best way to go because you get the full peppery/earthy flavors from the lowland area and the high-­sugar piñas of the highland area.

Sparkle Donkey requires a minimum of 21 brix sugar content, and typically average 28 brix, and their piñas are trimmed very close to the heart of the plant. If the leafy green part is left on it can give you an oily/waxy taste. They also make sure that under or over ripe piñas are left in the field.

Time-tested cooking and distillation methods are used, including cooking in traditional brick hornos for 36-54 hours to retain the sweet natural flavors. Their water is sourced directly from the springs of the "Volcán de Tequila" which run underneath the distillery. Fermenting four times longer than most Tequila producers, Sparkle Donkey retains as much flavor as possible in their Tequila. Sparkle Donkey is double distilled and is finished with a unique post­-distillation oxygenation process, used to to provide a smoother finish.

The name is fun, but the quality is serious. El Burro Esparkalo!

Photo by TEQUILA.net