El Tequileño The Sassenach Select Double Wood Reposado Tequila

Bottled at 94 proof (47% ABV), this reposado has more grip than most rested tequilas without losing the softness that time in wood brings. It is additive free, so what you taste is agave and the barrel, nothing else propping it up.

Citrus peel cuts through first, bright and a little bitter in the way fresh zest is. Underneath sits coconut and vanilla, rounded and sweet but not sugary. Coffee turns up further along and pulls the whole thing darker, with baking spice and light oak trailing behind. The wood influence is clear but never heavy-handed — cooked agave still has the last word.

Reposado tequila spends between two and twelve months in barrel, and this one drinks like it used that time well. Sip it neat at room temperature. The 750 mL bottle also makes a good base for an old fashioned built on tequila instead of whiskey.