Review: Mijenta Tequila Anejo

The trilogy is finally complete as we look at the last expression in the Mijenta tequila lineup, following its blanco and reposado. It’s a complex spirit (from a newly minted B Corp), so let’s dig into the details:

Mijenta Añejo Gran Reserva is an eighteen-month aged expression of the brand’s award-winning, sustainable, and artisanal Mijenta Blanco. A limited quantity of Blanco is reserved in the cellars to be aged and blended. Mijenta’s Añejo is aged for more than 18 months in 4 different oak barrels — American white oak, French oak, French acacia casks, and cherry barrels — resulting in a more complex, intense, and exquisitely well-blended expression of Mijenta. Carefully crafted with a commitment to environmental sustainability and support for the local community, the Añejo Gran Reserva offers the most exclusive product from the brand to-date, priced at $170 with just 360 cases produced from the first batch.

As with Mijenta’s reposado expressions, this anejo is quiet and soft, fruity with notes of fresh apple and balanced with vanilla and caramel notes. Peppery agave emerges in time, eventually offering a lightly herbaceous spray of greenery that, while not perfectly balanced with the up-front fruit, is at least complementary to a degree. The palate leads with the pepper and spice elements before finding its way to a surprisingly savory midpalate. Somewhat chalky on the body and pushy with notes of bell pepper and clove-heavy spices, the tequila eventually settles down to let some notes of chocolate and a slightly blunt vanilla extract character come through. A hint of cherry fruit emerges late in the game, but whether that’s driven by the aforementioned cherry barrels or something else is a mystery. Bracing and a bit salty on the finish, the tequila never quite finds a perfect through-line the way the reposado does, bouncing around before eventually fading out, leaving pepper clinging to the back of the throat. Maybe four barrel types is asking for too much from the base spirit — not to mention your wallet.

80 proof. NOM 1412.

B+ / $170 / mijenta-tequila.com

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