La Alteña - Camarena Hermanos

Ocho is a famous and unique Mexican tequila, produced by Camarena Hermanos at the Alteña distillery. In the state of Jalisco, a southwestern region of Mexico, Carlos Camarena in collaboration with Tomas Estes, who is one of the most influential personalities in the world of tequila and the European Ambassador for Tequila, grow their own agave plants on several plots overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The Camarenas are now in their third generation of tequilero and are now an established and leading exponent of this type of distillate in the world. Their distillery, La Alteña, produces what is effectively one of the most awarded tequilas in the world.

Ocho, or eight, is the number of years it takes for the agave to ripen before it is harvested. Eight is also the number of kilograms needed to produce one litre of tequila, as well as the number of days it takes for the agave to reach the distillery floor and turn white. Tequila is made entirely from blue agave whose leaves are cut off to get to the "piña", the heart of the plant, which is cooked slowly for eight hours to extract the fermentable sugars needed to start the disintegration process. Mineral water is added to the agave juice and fermentation takes place in wooden barrels, where the indigenous yeasts and bacteria form a population that enriches the must during the fermentation process. This process takes between 96 and 120 hours. After distillation in discontinuous stills, ageing takes place in American oak barrels, in which American whiskeys have been aged.

With Ocho tequila, Camarena Hermanos has succeeded in bringing centuries of Central American history into the world. A drink that has its roots in the years of Spanish colonisation, when the "beer" of the Mexican populations was pulque and the conquistadors, who were left without brandy, adopted this drink and modified it until they arrived at the current one. This wonderful historical fusion, combined with the wide base of Mexican gastronomy, has embraced European culture and modified its conception and experience. Ocho is all this, as well as tradition and commitment in carrying forward a wonderful family business.