Maple Liqueur Tequila
If there’s one thing the country of Mexico doesn’t want to give up control of, it’s tequila. That’s why even those who have a great idea for a tequila product like Troy Bilodeau, a partner in Langley B.C.’s Berezan Tequila Ltd., have to be creative in how they bring that product to life.
Bilodeau says the idea for Maple Liqueur Tequila (Maple Cinnamon Liqueur in the U.S.) came to him behind the wheel. “It actually was the 2009 Super Bowl, I was driving down the road and that’s when it kind of hit me, ‘I wonder if there is a maple flavoured tequila'?’” .
He was in the car with his friend Wayne Rezunyk at the time and later the pair joined forces with the third in the partnership, Ralph Berezan.
Rezunyk, who is all about the product and formulation side of the business, chose Reposado Tequila as the base.
“This is a Highlands Tequila or also known as ‘Los Altos’,” he says of the Reposado.
The key ingredient to make the easy drinking tequila is the pure maple syrup. Rezunyk tried 12 different types before choosing one from Citadelle Co-Operatives of Quebec, adding pure cinnamon oil from Sri Lanka, which Bilodeau says is the best in the world.
The ingredients and formulation are one thing, but the product must be created in Mexico due to the regulations.
“We looked at 40-plus distilleries in Mexico,” Bilodeau says. “El Viejito has been around for many, many years. We were lucky to have run into such a great family.”
The distillery has been instrumental in helping get the product to market and were involved with the entire process including Mexican regulatory hurdles.
“That’s the eye-opener about this whole process,” says Bilodeau. “Just how much is involved in creating the whole product… how many loop holes you have to go through.”
The trio believes in making the best quality flavoured tequila possible and Bilodeau says it has paid off in positive responses from both men and women. While tequila may traditionally be seen as a man’s liquor, the flavouring of this product appeals to both sexes.
“It’s one of those products that you can talk about it but until you try it, you really don’t know,” he says.
Maple Liqueur Tequila has been well received taking three medals in competitions including the Bronze Medal for 2014 Spirits of Mexico Competition in San Diego.
Agave
Tequila
Tequila is a regional specific name for a distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila. Although tequila is similar to mezcal, modern tequila differs somewhat in the method of its production, in the use of only blue agave plants, as well as in its regional specificity.
The red volcanic soil in the surrounding region is particularly well suited to the growing of the blue agave, and more than 300 million of the plants are harvested there each year. Tequila is recognized as a Mexican designation of origin product in more than 40 countries.
