Tequila Ocho, the original single-field, single-estate tequila, announces an evolution in the brand’s mission to prove terroir exists in spirits just as it does in wine. Since 2008, Ocho has harvested dozens of single fields of blue Weber agave from the highlands of Jalisco. Ocho remains a single estate tequila, and now takes its pursuit of proving terroir exists in blue Weber agave even further, showcasing agave from more regions within Tequila’s Denomination of Origin.
The brand’s new Terroir Select vintages are single-region, multi-field tequilas made from agaves grown in one of eight designated zones of Mexico’s Highlands region. Agaves for Terroir Select are grown in ranchos located in Jalisco, Guanajuato and Michoacán.
The first Terroir Select vintage, Comunidad, is made with agaves grown at El Nacimiento de Abajo in Arandas, Jalisco, and is the neighboring community to Ocho’s homeplace Tequilera Los Alambiques, as well as its original home of Destilería La Alteńa. The agaves were purchased from local, family agave farmers, some of whom have been a part of the Camarena family business for generations. The vintage will be released in both a Plata and Reposado expression, each weighing in at 40% ABV/80 proof.
Why it matters: In a natural extension of the brand’s exploration of terroir in spirits and in an effort to provide an economic boost to small farmers, Tequila Ocho looked to the local agave farms around its distilleries to be able to express the unique terroir and environment of the land, while also providing support to the growers at a time when the agave market downturn has led family farmers to abandon their crop, taking a loss.
Said Camarena, “Terroir Select serves two purposes. First, it enables us to help smaller agave farmers who share our commitment to growing only the best agave on some of the best land Mexico has to offer. Hence the name of the first release, Comunidad, which translates in English to ‘community’. Second, it allows us to explore the influence that terroir of other regions in Mexico has on tequila. This helps deepen our understanding of the role terroir plays in the cultivation of blue Weber agave and, in turn, its role in tequila distilled from those agaves.”
Tequila Ocho Terroir Select Comunidad will be available at bottle shops and back bars in the US beginning in late December 2025.
Tequila Ocho will continue its focus on Single Estate, single field vintages, and Terroir Select vintages will complement them throughout the year, into the future.