Pouring just an ounce of Tequila Ocho Single Estate Plata 2012 from the bottle sends a rush of fruit into the air. Highly aromatic, but not busily so, this plata greets the nose with aromas of papaya, banana, grapefruit and cooked agave. Swirl it to yield some field grasses, a bit of butterscotch and even cooked bell pepper.
The taste is delightful: loads of agave, white pepper, some peppermint and after some time, a touch of salt. The distiller’s tasting notes mentioned pomegranate, but I didn’t get it. So I walked to my liquor cabinet for a whiff of Pama liqueur, the closest thing I had, and sniffed again.
Maybe, but not clearly.
His mention of green olive brine made sense to my sinuses, as did the his claim of “tutti-frutti.” For me, that came off a bit more like bubble gum, but not at all cloying as that might imply.
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