Casamigos Añejo

George Clooney and Rande Gerber built Casamigos for themselves long before they built it for sale. The story goes they wanted a tequila smooth enough to drink all night without a wince the next morning. The Añejo is where that easy-drinking idea meets real age: fourteen months in American oak, taking the bright Blue Weber agave of the Jalisco highlands and slowing it right down.

In the glass it's a deep amber. The nose is generous and sweet, with caramel and vanilla up front, then soft baking spice and a note of roasted agave underneath to remind you what you're drinking. The palate is silky, almost dessert-like: butterscotch, vanilla cream, a little dried fruit. The agave keeps it honest and stops it turning syrupy, and it finishes warm and long on a gentle fade of oak and spice.

What Casamigos does better than almost anyone at this price is smoothness. This is tequila you can sip neat without a second thought, which is the real test of an añejo. It won't lecture you on terroir or tradition. It just wants you to enjoy it.

How to Serve

Neat in a short tumbler or a copita at room temperature is how it shines. Over one big cube on a warm evening works too. Save it for after dinner rather than for shooting.

Where to Drink It

The Connaught Bar in Mayfair, for a properly made agave cocktail. American Bar at The Savoy, if you're marking an occasion. Scarfes Bar at the Rosewood, for a nightcap.

Food Pairings

Try it after dinner with a square of dark chocolate, or a wedge of aged Manchego.