Just in time for Thanksgiving, locally-owned Alma del Jaguar Tequila has released its limited-edition Barricas series.
Barricas means “cask,” says McCauley Williams, CEO of locally-owned Morningside Brands Inc., the parent company of Alma del Jaguar.
“It’s a five-part series of unique cask-finished tequilas in some of the most exotic casks in the world to create unique tequila profiles.”
In 2023, Williams introduced Tequila Blanco, which is un-aged; Tequila Reposado, which is aged in French oak wine casks; and in 2024 he introduced Tequila Añejo, which is aged in French oak wine barrels.
Alma del Jaguar means “soul or spirit of the jaguar,” says Williams, whose company supports wild jaguar conservation in Mexico with a percentage of tequila sales proceeds.
A native Memphian, Williams also came up with the idea for the new tequila line. “It’s something I’ve been working on since we started the company.”
He was always “fascinated with cask finishing as a way to distinguish spirits.” And, he says, “I have good contacts in the cask-finishing world.”
Williams thought, “This could be a unique way to distinguish our brand from other great tequilas.”
The new tequilas include Mizunara Oak (Japan) Cask, made from their Tequila Añejo, which was aged for 22 months in Japanese mizunara oak kegs.
It’s the first-ever tequila aged in Japanese mizunara oak, Williams says. “First off, it’s the most expensive oak in the world. … It’s like the most important and rarest oak in the world.”
Aging the tequila in these oak kegs “brings out flavors of sandalwood, incense, and Asian teas.”
Pear Wood (France) is their Tequila Reposado, which was aged for 19 months in “wild harvested pear barrels” from Jura, France. “These barrels are unique. Not made from oak, but the wood of a pear tree. It brings out earth and sweet pear flavors. That’s the first time anyone has done that.”
Vino de Naranja, which means “orange wine” in Spanish, is their Tequila Añejo, which was aged 19 months in casks that contained Vino de Naranja, a “dessert wine made from macerated orange peel. This one brings out notes of vanilla.”
Apple Brandy (France) is Tequila Añejo aged in casks that previously held Calvados and French apple brandy. “It brings out, as you expect, notes of cooked apple.”
Its profile also includes cinnamon, agave, vanilla, and caramel.
Ruby Wine (Portugal) is Tequila Añejo aged 19 months in “Ruby Port casks from Portugal. This one brings out tones of rich ripe fruits and a nut medley. Like a bunch of different nutty flavors.”
With all these wines, Williams says, “There is an inherent sweeter profile due to the barrels,” he says. This “will provide an element of naturally occurring sweetness. A lot of brands add artificial sweeteners in their tequila, but we don’t do that.”
The Barricas series is their “highest-end releases,” Williams says. They sell from $130 to $150.
“We’ve been working on this for three years,” Williams says. That includes “sourcing the barrels” and aging the tequila.
“The labels are all unique. We feature the jaguar from our main label, but we show it in color. Normally, our labels are in black and white. The jaguar on each label is an image that is inspired by the cask that was used.”
The Barricas tequila series is now available at limited retailers and bars and restaurants. “We only made around 7,000 bottles of all of it. We’re distributing it across the whole country now.”
Williams also wanted to do something with his uncle, Rick Williams, because of Rick’s commitment to wild jaguar conservation in Mexico.
As McCauley said in an earlier Memphis Flyer interview, “About 25 years ago, Rick moved to Mexico as a wildlife photographer to study wild jaguars with a team of biologists. He then co-founded the Northern Jaguar Project, which is a binational effort between biologists and conservationists in the United States and Mexico to study and protect the northernmost population of wild jaguars in the world.
“He also founded the Northern Jaguar Reserve, a 60,000 acre wildlife refuge in Mexico, where the wild jaguars actually live and breathe.”
After he got the idea for the new line of tequilas, McCauley contacted Rob Crandall, who is “the leading expert in this field in the world. This is his job. He travels the world finding exotic casks for the wine and spirits industry.”
McCauley travels five times a year to his company’s distillery in Arandas, Mexico. “We get to go down and open up a bunch of the casks. Get samples. Spend the better part of the day tasting, analyzing them.”
Arandas is “a really interesting community. It’s an agrarian community. Obviously, they produce tequila there, but mostly it’s a cattle ranching and farming community. Not all that different from Tennessee and Mississippi, in a sense. There’s farming and ranching. So, when I showed up there in my cowboy boots, I fit right in.”
Williams is already looking into other casks, which range from 225 to 250 liters, for future tequilas. “We are exploring amburana casks from Brazil. It’s a type of wood. It brings out distinct notes of cinnamon.”
He also is looking into “Japanese sakura. Cherry blossoms. A cheery, Japanese cherry wood.”
In addition to the tequilas, Williams also has his gin brand, Waymar Gin House, in the area. “It’s doing well. In five states and growing.”
And he recently released his new bourbon brand, Duck Club Bourbon, which he co-founded with country music singer Riley Green.