Lalo Blanco Tequila
by Brian Donnelly
August 15, 2022
Overview
The name Lalo is a nickname for Eduardo, but the story of Lalo Blanco Tequila really begins with Julio González Estrada, the grandfather of co-founder Eduardo “Lalo” González (Jr.). He began working as a janitor at seven years old at a tequila distillery in the town of Atotonilco, outside of Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico. Ten years later, he bought his first distillery in 1942 at 17 with a personal loan. Fast forward to 1987, Lalo's father, Eduardo “Lalo” González García (Sr.), was the Vice President of the company and wanted to create an exceptional tequila for a dinner party celebrating the 45th anniversary of Julio González Estrada, who had recently retired due to health issues. The tequila made for that dinner party would officially become the Don Julio brand three years later in 1989, which was the same year Lalo was born. Lalo's father wanted to have a premium tequila that would honor not only his father's legacy but also be something special and premium to change the perception of tequila, which at the time had a bad reputation, especially in the United States. The family sold the Don Julio brand in 2003, and Diageo currently owns the brand.
Eduardo “Lalo” González Jr. has been living in a world of tequila since he was born and has always dreamed of owning his brand. In 2015, a childhood friend named David Rodriguez Carballido was working in marketing for the Don Julio brand and contacted Lalo to learn more stories about his family before the launch of the new Don Julio 70th Anniversary Tequila. The two decided to create a product that would honor the agave and be unique to the tequila category. They began developing Lalo as a private batch product for friends and family, and their product made an unofficial debut at a big wedding in March of 2017. The product was such a hit that David's husband, an Austin-based entrepreneur named Jim McDermott, offered to help take the brand public. The following month, in April 2017, Lalo's father passed away. Lalo knew that he had a great story and a great product. He wanted to honor his father's memory by putting his name on the bottle as his father did with his grandfather.
Production
All the agave used for Lalo Tequila comes from the Highlands (Los Altos) region of Jalisco. The agave from the Highlands has a fruiter and floral flavor profile, while the Lowlands (El Valle) usually has a more mineral and vegetal flavor profile. Lalo wants to achieve a particular flavor profile, and he feels that this region's elevation, water, and soil help him with that consistency. Less water is available in the Highlands, and each agave has to fight for enough water, much like a vineyard. Finally, Lalo's family is from this region, and he wants to support those farmers. A family friend owns both agave and the distillery, and the brand sources exclusively from his farming company. The Mexican government has recognized this grower for its social and environmental responsibility by granting them an ESR Certification. The average agave piña is 6.5 years old, but Lalo has said that age isn't the most crucial factor when choosing agave; instead, choosing fully mature agave with sugar levels are stable. A 12-year-old agave plant, for example, will be over-ripe.
The agave is transported from the farms in the Highlands to the Grupo Tequilero Distillery (NOM 1468) near Arandas, Jalisco. The agave piñas are split in half, stacked, and slow cooked under low pressure in stone ovens for 20-24 hours, then cooled for 20-24 hours. The cooked agaves are run through a roller mill for extraction and fermented in open-air tanks using Champagne yeast for an average of five days. This Champagne yeast is sourced from a supplier than sells yeast to Champagne houses in French for their first fermentation. The brand uses water from a deep well for all aspects of production, and Lalo claims it adds minerality and is the best water source in the Aranadas region. The open-air fermentation highlights the fruity flavors because there is also additional native yeast in addition to the Champagne yeast. The brand does not want to use only natural fermentation from wild yeast because it would be challenging to have consistency and achieve the brand's unique desired flavor profile.
The fermented juice is double distilled in 100 % copper pot stills with a capacity of 3,500 liters. There are three stills total; and the first two stills are used for the first round of distillation, and the second still is used exclusively for the second distillation. The off-the-still proof is 114 (57 % ABV), and the distillate is reduce to 80 proof (40 % ABV) for bottling. Finally, each batch must be approved by a tasting panel. There are no additives in Lalo, which is a three-ingredient tequila, agave, yeast, and water. Lalo has a great production team, and because the brand only has one expression, this gives Lalo the flexibility to travel and spread the brand's message. There is no waste, because the brand contracts with a third-party company to pickup all bi-products of production and this company uses them to create agave-based products such as fabric, straws, plates, etc.
The Bottle
The bottle for Lalo Tequila is short, just like the bottles for the Don Julio brand. The Don Julio brand unofficially made its first appearance at a dinner party in 1987, Lalo's father wanted to keep the bottle in the middle of the table so everyone could access it without the bottle interrupting eye contact at the table. Lalo's father also taught him that if he used a short bottle, then bars would put it at the front of the bars where it would be more visual to customers and accessible to the bartenders. The blue and gold colors represent the Jalisco flag, which is the state where Lalo was born and grew up but also the home to the majority of commercially important tequila production. The label is clean and straightforward. The logo is a church because the creators want Lalo Tequila to bring people together as a community. In Mexico, every town and city is built around the local Catholic Church. The square in front of the church becomes a gathering point for the community.
Visit the company’s website, here.
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