Tres Generaciones is an award-winning super-premium tequila

Tequila

Tequila is a spirit made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, northwest of Guadalajara, and in the highlands of the western Mexican state of Jalisco....

 produced in Tequila, a municipality of the state of Jalisco

Jalisco

Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...

, Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. It was created in 1973 by Don Francisco Javier Sauza to honor the three successive generations of tequila makers of the Sauza family since 1873: Don Cenobio, Don Eladio, and Don Javier Sauza. Tres Generaciones is owned by Sauza Tequila

Sauza Tequila

Sauza Tequila Import Company is a producer of tequila located in Tequila, a municipality of the state of Jalisco, Mexico. It was founded in 1873 when Don Cenobio Sauza started La Perseverancia distillery. Sauza Tequila Import Company is owned by Beam Inc., headquartered in the Chicago suburb...

 Import Company, headquartered in the Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 suburb Deerfield

Deerfield

Deerfield is the name of many places in the United States. In some cases, these places correspond to the previous locations of "deer fields" created by Native Americans.*Deerfield, Illinois*Deerfield, Indiana*Deerfield, Iowa*Deerfield, Kansas...

, IL, USA.

Don Cenobio Sauza

In 1873 Don Cenobio Sauza

Don Cenobio Sauza

Don Cenobio Sauza , known as the "Father of Tequila," was one of the earliest and longest lasting distillers of the tequila spirit – founding the Sauza Tequila distillery – La Perseverancia – in 1873....

 founded Sauza at La Perseverancia distillery. He was the first distiller to call the spirit produced from blue agave plant "tequila" and the first to export the drink to the United States.

Don Eladio Sauza

His son, Don Eladio Sauza

Don Eladio Sauza

Don Eladio Sauza ran the Sauza Tequila business from 1909 to 1946.- Early life :Eladio Sauza was born June 16, 1883 in the city of Tequila, Mexico to Don Cenobio Sauza and Doña Margarita Madrigal Navarro...

 was born in Tequila in 1883. He expanded the family business by opening branches in Monterrey

Monterrey

Monterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...

 and Mexico City and a concession in Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

.

Don Francisco Javier Sauza

In 1931, his son, Don Francisco Javier Sauza

Don Francisco Javier Sauza

Don Francisco Javier Sauza ran the Sauza Tequila business from 1946 until leading Mexican brandy producer Pedro Domecq purchased it in 1988.- Early life :...

 took over the business.

Business acquisition

By the 1970s, demand for tequila was increasing worldwide. Sauza distillery formed a partnership with the leading Mexican brandy producer, Pedro Domecq. This relationship eventually led to Pedro Domecq's complete purchase of Sauza distillery in 1988. When Allied Lyos acquired Pedro Domecq in 1994, Allied Domecq

Allied Domecq

Allied Domecq PLC was an international company, headquartered in Bristol, UK that operated spirits, wine, and quick service restaurant businesses. It was once a FTSE 100 Index constituent but has been acquired by Pernod Ricard.-History:...

was formed. The brand was purchased by Fortune Brands on July 26, 2005.

Process

In order for a spirit to be officially called tequila, it must be produced in the Mexican village of Tequila and be at least 51% agave. To be “100% agave azul” it must be made from 100% of the sugars fermented from the blue agave plant. All tequila bottled in Mexico must have a NOM number - the Official Mexican Standard of Tequila that is regulated by the Mexican Government; otherwise it is not authentic tequila. Tres Generaciones’ NOM number is 1102.

Harvesting the Agave

At Tequila Sauza's nursery immature plants are kept under tents in peat pots for one year until they are ready to be planted in the fields. http://cocktails.about.com/od/history/ig/Tequila-Country/mx_023_sauza_nursery.htm After 6-8 years of growth the mature agave plants are ready to harvest. The agave plants are dug out of the ground and the leaves are removed one by one until the entire field is complete. The people that work the harvest are called jimadores and they use a specialized tool called the coa to remove the hard leaves from the piña. It is a labor-intensive task that has to be done with care to ensure only the ripe piñas are collected. Many of the jimadores' fathers and grandfathers did the same job. Once the piñas are cleaned of their leaves they are loaded onto trucks and sent to the distillery to begin the production of tequila. The agave fibers left after harvesting are recycled for use as compost.

Triple Distilled

Agave piñas are brought into La Perseverancia distillery from the fields. The agave is then pressed and crushed to extract the juices that will be sent to fermentation. After fermentation, the juices are distilled three times to remove impurities.

Aged

Plata is ready for bottling after distillation. The Añejo and Reposado tequilas are put in American oak barrels to age.

Variants

Tres Generaciones is available in three variants:

• Tres Generaciones Plata - 100% blue agave, triple-distilled, unaged.
• Tres Generaciones Reposado - 100% blue agave, triple-distilled, aged at least four months in American oak barrels.
• Tres Generaciones Añejo - 100% blue agave, triple-distilled, aged 12 months in toasted American oak barrels.