Review: Agavero (Licor de Tequila)  77.5/100
Review by Chip Dykstra
Refreshed March 2020

Agavero is a tequila based liqueur based upon a blend of 100% blue agave Tequila (Reposado and Anejo), with the essence of the Damiana Flower.  Lazaro Gallardo, the founder of Los Camichines Distillery, in Jalisco, Mexico, is credited with creating Agavero in 1857. It is produced as a sipping liqueur meant for those who want a lighter, sweeter and more refined Tequila experience.

Agavero is distributed in North America by Proximo Spirits who have been increasing their presence on the world stage by acquiring key brands of distilled spirits such as Matusalem Rum, and Jose Cuervo Tequila.

Agavero (Licor de Tequila) is bottled at 32 per cent alcohol by volume.

In the Bottle 4.5/5

As you can see, Agavero arrives packaged in an attractive bottle which looks as though it must have a genie in it. Although I rubbed the bottle quite vigorously I can testify that no such genie was forthcoming. But (all joking aside), I think this is a very nice presentation. Had the bottle been completed with a nice solid straight sided cork instead of a metal screw-cap, I would have scored it perfectly.

(An actual genie inside would have scored bonus points.)

In the Glass 8.5/10

Agavero is a bronze/brown coloured liqueur. Tilting the glass leaves a thick film of liquid film on the sides which drops thick legs down the inside. The aroma is very sweet and sugary with a muted somewhat punky agave scent. There are the vaguest hints of orange citrus, passion-fruit, peppery spices, and lime. The different scents are somewhat melted together and this is not aggressive at all. The normal spicy aroma I usually encounter in Tequila has been tamed.

In my Mouth 46/60

The agave flavour, the orange and lime citrus notes, and the hot pepper burst are all obscured by the sweetness of the liqueur. The result is a mild, somewhat pleasing combination of punky agave and sugar syrup. Over time, the spirit, (although pleasing at first) can become cloying. I am tempted to describe the spirit as dessert liqueur and recommend that it be enjoyed in small doses.

I found more enjoyment mixing sweet summertime Margarita style cocktails using Agavero and Silver Tequila together with the Lime. By omitting the usual sweetener in the cocktail and using Aqavero as the sweetener, I found the servings I created were quite pleasing.

In the Throat  11/15

This liqueur does not burn the throat in the least. But what it does do, is leave the palate and the throat coated with sweetness. The flavours under the syrup are pleasing, but the sweetness is just too much, even as a dessert liqueur.

The Aftermath 7.5/10

I was not entirely pleased with Agavero. It seems too sweet to be enjoyed on its own. My recommendation is to use the spirit in conjunction with a silver tequila in a Margarita style omitting the sweetener which would normally be used. Because of the limited nature of the serving I did not feel that a high score was warranted.

You may read some of my other reviews of  Liqueurs and Flavoured Spirits (click the link) if you wish to have some comparative reviews.

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Suggested Cocktail:

The Agavero Margarita

1 oz  Silver Tequila
1/2 oz  Agavero
1  oz  fresh Lime Juice
Ice
Slice of Lime

Add the ingredients into a metal shaker with ice
Shake until the sides of the shaker frost
Strain into a chilled martini glass
Garnish with a small peel of Cara Cara Orange
Enjoy!

Note: If  you are interested in more of my original cocktail recipes, please click this link (Cocktails and Recipes) for more of my mixed drink recipes!

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As always you may interpret the scores I provide as follows.

0-25 A spirit with a rating this low would actually kill you.
26-49 Depending upon your fortitude you might actually survive this.
50 -59 You are safe to drink this…but you shouldn’t.
60-69 Substandard swill which you may offer to people you do not want to see again.
70-74 Now we have a fair mixing rum or whisky.  Accept this but make sure it is mixed into a cocktail.
75-79 You may begin to serve this to friends, again probably still cocktail territory.
80-84 We begin to enjoy this spirit neat or on the rocks. (I will still primarily mix cocktails)
85-89 Excellent for sipping or for mixing!
90-94 Definitely a primary sipping spirit, in fact you may want to hoard this for yourself.
95-97.5 The Cream of the Crop
98+ I haven’t met this bottle yet…but I want to.

Very loosely we may put my scores into terms that you may be more familiar with on a Gold, Silver, and  Bronze medal  scale as follows:

70 – 79.5    Bronze Medal (Recommended only as a mixer)
80 – 89.5     Silver Medal (Recommended for sipping and or a high quality mixer)
90 – 95         Gold Medal (Highly recommended for sipping and for sublime cocktails.)
95.5+            Platinum Award (Highest Recommendation)