Puntagave "Ceramic" Double Barrel Tequila Añejo

Puntagave's Ceramic Double Barrel Añejo is a limited-edition expression made from 100% Blue Weber agave grown in the highlands of Jesús María, Jalisco, distilled in 120-year-old copper pot stills, and aged sequentially in New American Oak and New French Oak barrels. Maestro Tequilero Guillermo Barroso Arnaud — only the second certified Maestro Tequilero in the world — developed the brand's proprietary undercooking technique through 52 recipe revisions, deliberately sacrificing sugar yield to preserve a brighter, more expressive agave character. The double-barrel program builds complexity while keeping highland agave at the center, and the handmade ceramic decanter allows the spirit to continue evolving after bottling as volatile compounds gently homogenize over time. The production begins with estate agave harvested from highland parcels in Jalisco's red volcanic soil, a terroir that yields fruit-forward, floral agave with pronounced citrus and mineral notes. Barroso Arnaud's undercooking method — a closely guarded departure from standard high-sugar conversion — results in a mosto that retains more raw vegetal brightness and less caramelized sweetness, a profile that persists through distillation. The heart cut from the copper pot stills is aged first in new American oak to build structure and vanilla backbone, then finished in new French oak for fine-grained tannin and spice. The ceramic bottle is not decorative novelty — the porous material allows micro-oxygenation that continues to round the spirit in ways glass cannot, a technique borrowed from historical pottery-stored spirits and adapted here for modern añejo aging. Each bottle is hand-labeled with original artwork by COCOLVU, and the run is capped at 500 bottles. On the nose, mature cooked agave mingles with citrus peel, warm cedar, and a thread of vanilla from the American oak. The palate opens with layers of dried apricot, roasted hazelnut, and sweet highland agave, followed by oak spice and a hint of black pepper from the French barrel finish. The texture is round and settled, with no sharp alcohol heat — a result of both the extended aging and the post-bottling evolution inside the ceramic vessel. The finish is long, balancing fruit sweetness with dry tannin and a return of agave brightness. This is a tequila to sip slowly, ideally alongside dark chocolate, aged Manchego, or roasted duck, and it rewards the collector who appreciates both distilling craft and functional art. Puntagave Ceramic Double Barrel Añejo is available for pickup at Off Premise Chicago, 1128 W Armitage Ave in Lincoln Park, for local Chicago delivery, or nationwide shipping.