Tequila Herradura (officially Grupo Industrial Herradura) is a
tequila
Tequila (; ) is a liquor, distilled beverage made from the Agave tequilana, blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, Jalisco, Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands ...
distiller located in
Amatitán
Amatitán is the head of a municipality in the Mexican state of Jalisco
Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one o ...
,
Jalisco
Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal En ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. It was formally founded in 1870 by
Aurelio López and the business remained in the family for over 125 years. Today it is owned by US beverage maker
Brown-Forman, but the tequila is still made in the same place and facilities under a Mexican subsidiary. Tequila products sold under the Herradura name are 100%
agave
''Agave'' (; ; ) is a genus of monocots native to the hot and arid regions of the Americas and the Caribbean, although some ''Agave'' species are also native to tropical areas of North America, such as Mexico. The genus is primarily known for ...
. The company makes other tequila products, such as El Jimador, which is the best-selling tequila in Mexico, as well as New Mix, a tequila and grapefruit soda beverage. Since its acquisition by Brown-Forman, Herradura has had many promotional efforts in Mexico and the United States, including inviting artists to use tequila barrels as the bases for art pieces, which are then displayed and auctioned off for charity.
History
The first known owner of the tequila-producing property was Feliciano Romo in the early 19th century.
The official history of Herradura begin with Félix López, who began as the distillery administrator under then owners Josefa Salazar and her sons. In 1870, López took over the distillery and agave fields and registered it as a tequila producer under the name of Hacienda San José del Refugio.
Félix López married Carmen Rosales, and they had two children, Aurelio and María de Jesús. The couple modernized tequila production at the hacienda, building a facility that remained in use until 1963. López died in 1878, and Rosales took over the business along with her brother Ambrosio Rosales and his wife, Elisa Gomez Cuervo. Later, the business was inherited by Aurelio López.
The construction of railroads in the late 19th century allowed for easier shipping to other parts of Mexico and increased tequila’s popularity in the country.
By this time, the hacienda’s tequila was well known, with Aurelio giving it the name of Herradura.
The name, which means horseshoe in Spanish, is a said to have come from the finding of a horseshoe on the hacienda property. Stories vary, but the one told by the company’s website says that it was found in the early 1900s by Aurelio while inspecting the
agave
''Agave'' (; ; ) is a genus of monocots native to the hot and arid regions of the Americas and the Caribbean, although some ''Agave'' species are also native to tropical areas of North America, such as Mexico. The genus is primarily known for ...
fields. It gleamed like gold, and the horseshoe was kept for luck, then naming the tequila after it.
In the 1920s the
Cristero War
The Cristero War ( es, Guerra Cristera), also known as the Cristero Rebellion or es, La Cristiada, label=none, italics=no , was a widespread struggle in central and western Mexico from 1 August 1926 to 21 June 1929 in response to the implementa ...
broke out, with both Aurelio and his sister María de Jesus as sympathizers. At one point, government troops surrounded the hacienda, but the siblings were able to escape. However, Aurelio never returned to the hacienda again.
The hacienda passed into the hand of Aurelio’s cousin David Rosales, who kept the tequila 100% agave despite the trend towards blending to cut costs. In 1928, he registered the Herradura brand in Mexico City with a horseshoe as its logo. María de Jesús was able to return to Herradura and distinguished herself with charitable works to the town of Amatitán, including the building of wells in an area with little water.
The hacienda and the Herradura brand remained in the family for over a century. In the 1960s, the old factory was shut down in favor of a new one but kept as a museum. During this time, Herradura Añejo Tequila was introduced with Reposado introduced in 1974. In 1994, the el Jimador brand was introduced and became the #1 seller in Mexico. New Mix, a ready-made tequila cocktail, was introduced in 1997 and also became the best-selling beverage of its kind.
In the 1990s, there was conflict over sales of shares in the company by some members of the family as well as agave growing land. Part of the legal problems stemmed from selling shares to non-Mexican entities.
In 2004, Herradura bought back foreign-owned shares, making the company 100% Mexican owned again. At this time, the company controlled thirty percent of the Mexican tequila markets behind
Jose Cuervo
Jose Cuervo is the best-selling brand of tequila,Dana Cimilluca, Paul Sonne and Simon Zekaria“Diageo Ends Its Attempt to Buy Jose Cuervo Tequila,”''Wall Street Journal'', December 11, 2012. selling a fifth of the tequila consumed worldwide. ...
’s forty percent share.
However, in 2007 all assets of the company were sold for $USD 776 million to the US-based company Brown-Forman, which produces other alcoholic beverages such as
Jack Daniel's
Jack Daniel's is a brand of Tennessee whiskey. It is produced in Lynchburg, Tennessee, by the Jack Daniel Distillery, which has been owned by the Brown–Forman Corporation since 1956.
Packaged in square bottles, Jack Daniel's "Black Label" T ...
,
Southern Comfort
Southern Comfort (often abbreviated SoCo) is an American, naturally fruit-flavored, whiskey liqueur with fruit and spice accents. The brand was created by bartender Martin Wilkes Heron in New Orleans in 1874, using whiskey as the base spirit. W ...
,
Finlandia Vodka
Finlandia is a brand of vodka produced in Finland. It is made from barley distilled into a neutral spirit in the village of Koskenkorva in Ilmajoki, operated by Finland's Altia Corporation. The distilled alcohol is then transported to a produc ...
and
Korbel California Champagne.
That same year Herradura was named "best distillery of 2007" by
Wine Enthusiast Magazine
''Wine Enthusiast'' magazine is an American wine magazine published by Wine Enthusiast Companies in Valhalla, New York. Founded in 1979 by Adam and Sybil Strum, Wine Enthusiast Companies engages in the wine accessories, storage, information, educat ...
.
Since 2007, the brand has slowly become more internationally recognized. When Brown-Forman bought it, the brand was sold in fifty-three countries. Today, it is sold in 136 countries through the Brown-Forman network in Europe, South America, North America, and Asia.
Its market share in the United States and other countries has been growing as well.
Facilities
![Tequila-distillery-oven](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Tequila-distillery-oven.JPG)
Although owned by Brown-Forman, the facilities are still based in Amatitán. Jalisco is run by Grupo Industrial Herradura under manager Randy McCann.
The hacienda is the setting of several legends and ghost stories. These include sightings of old
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
s, and stories related to the various tunnels that were dug on the hacienda property during the Cristero War.
Over its history, the company has run all aspects of tequila production from growing the agave to bottling the final product.
Herradura brand tequilas are still made with agave hearts roasted in clay ovens and fermented with wild yeast.
In the late 2000s, the company invested about 15 million USD in water treatment plants, the Amatitán distillery, new laboratories, and other facilities.
The plant has an
ISO 9001-2000 ranking from
AENOR México and produces eighteen million liters annually.
The hacienda is part of the tourism sector of the area’s economy as well, with the
Tequila Express
The Tequila Express is a Mexican regional passenger train service that operates from Guadalajara, Jalisco, to the Sauza Tequila distillery in the municipality of Tequila. The municipality of Tequila is located appro ...
train arriving at it and Amatitán from
Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...
.
Products
Herradura produces tequila and tequila-based beverages under the Herradura, Hacienda de Cristero, Grand Imperio, El Jimador, and New Mix names. Herradura brand tequilas are 100 % blue agave.
As an authentic tequila, bottles bear certification from the Mexican government.
Herradura brands include Herradura Blanco (46% alcohol), Herradura Blanco Suave (40%), Herradura Reposado (40%), Herradura Antiguo (38%), Herradura Añejo (40%) and Selección Suprema (40%). The best-selling varieties are Reposado, Añejo, and Selección Suprema.
Herradura introduced their first Reposado tequila in 1974 and the Extra Añejo Selección Suprema in 1995.
Reposado is aged for eleven months in wood barrels.
Selección Suprema is aged for 49 months in oak barrels.
In 2012, the company redesigned the package of the Selección Suprema to reflect the traditional nature in which the extra-aged tequila is made.
Another important brand is el Jimador, launched in 1994 and named after those who harvest agave plants.
el Jimador is 100% agave tequila.
It is currently the best-selling tequila in Mexico, with a twelve percent market share.
New Mix is a canned tequila and grapefruit soda drink with five percent alcohol. It is also the best-selling product of its type in Mexico.
Herradura, in 2013 under the sub-label "Colección de la Casa," released in limited areas (Mexico, United States, El Salvador, and Australia), two new Reposado Tequilas partially aged in non-traditional barrels. One Aged in oak than in Port barrels and another partially aged in Cognac barrels as well as traditional oak.
Promotions
![ArteBarricas201201 33](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/ArteBarricas201201_33.JPG)
Since its acquisition by Brown-Forman, Herradura has had many promotional efforts in the United States and Mexico. Herradura was promoted as the "Official Tequila for the
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...
" in 2008.
In 2010, it created a program called "Buy-the-Barrel" in the United States aimed at tequila connoisseurs to purchase an entire barrel of Reposado, which yields about 240 bottles.
In 2011, the company began the "Arte en Barricas" (Art in Barrels) competition, inviting artists to use tequila barrels to create artwork. For its 142nd anniversary in 2012, the company invited 142 artists, forty-four of them well-known, such as
José Luis Cuevas
José Luis Cuevas (February 26, 1934 – July 3, 2017) was a Mexican artist, he often worked as a painter, writer, draftsman, engraver, illustrator, and printmaker. Cuevas was one of the first to challenge the then dominant Mexican muralism ...
and
Sebastián. The artists participated in Arte en Barricas for three prizes of 20,000 pesos and one prize of 10,000 pesos.
The resulting works were displayed in various museum in the country then auctioned off with the proceeds going to four charities: Bécalos, the
Museo de Arte Popular
The Museo de Arte Popular (Museum of Folk Art) is a museum in Mexico City, Mexico that promotes and preserves part of the Mexican handcrafts and folk art. Located in the historic center of Mexico City in an old fire house, the museum has a colle ...
, Sólo por Ayudar and Hogar Cabañas.
References
{{Brown-Forman
Tequila
Drink companies of Mexico
Companies based in Jalisco
Brown–Forman
Agriculture companies established in the 19th century
1870 establishments in Mexico
Food and drink companies established in 1870
Mexican subsidiaries of foreign companies