AsomBroso Blends Tradition and Innovation in Ultra-Premium Tequila Market
For Ricardo Gamarra, the CEO and founder of AsomBroso Tequila, of Rancho Santa Margarita, California, time is a friend and not a foe. Whether it’s triple-distilling his tequilas to give them extra smoothness and purity, aging them for over a decade, and then barrel-aging them for more than another year, every step in the process to produce AsomBroso’s products pays homage to the days, months, and years that he takes to get it right. And after 20 years in the business, he’s racked up quite a few successes.
Gamarra has brought some unique innovations into the often tradition-bound world of tequila. He was the one of first distillers to market a pink-hued, Bordeaux-rested reposado, rest a 5-year añejo in new French oak barrels, and rest extra-aged 11-year añejo tequila in a new French oak barrel. He considers his highest achievement so far to be The Collaboration, is a 12-year double barrel-rested tequila that combines his 11-year Extra Añejo with Silver Oak Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon American oak barrels for an additional 13 months. This produced a tequila that achieved a rating of 97 from industry expert Anthony Dias Blue in The Tasting Panel Magazine, making it the publication’s highest rated tequila. AsomBroso’s tequilas have also been awarded multiple honors from the Robb Report’s “Best of the Best” and named “Top Tequila” in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
“Our tequilas are inventive while honoring the long-standing traditional methods,” said Gamarra. “We believe AsomBroso has the potential to compete on a worldwide level.”
And the competition is fierce. There are approximately 1500 different brands of tequila, which is only produced in Mexico. But it’s a spirit category that is growing rapidly, with production up nearly 200 percent in the last two decades. The global tequila market is projected to grow by about 40 percent in the next five years, and much of that growth is fueled by 100 percent agave tequilas, many of them in the ultra-premium category that AsomBroso’s products occupy. Part of its strategy is to take away some of the market share of industry leader Patron, which has established name recognition even among casual tequila drinkers.
AsomBroso is Spanish for “amazing” and it’s a word that Gamarra believes his hand-crafted tequilas have earned. Its distillery is located in the town of Tequila, Mexico, in the heart of the Jalisco region, home to the most treasured blue agave crop in the country.
“We developed the proprietary recipe of AsomBroso tequila using 100 percent estate- grown, blue weber agave matured for an average of eight years,” said Gamarra, “which we produce and bottle at our 45-year-old, state-of-the-art distillery.”
And the elaborate packaging matches the attention to detail paid to the liquid inside it. AsomBroso’s uniquely shaped bottle is a hand-blown decanter crafted by artisanal glass blowers on the island of Murano in Venice, Italy, “Our custom bottle was specifically designed after an 18th century decanter,” Gamarra explained. “And our branding holds both US and international trademarks.”
Pricewise, the company is covering a range that appeals to drinkers who are willing to pay a modest amount more than other brands to get a high-quality product, all the way up to stratospheric prices that appeal to true aficionados with cash to burn. These are sipping tequilas to savor, not for making a batch of cheap margaritas from a packaged mix at a college party. AsomBroso’s award-winning blanco tequila has an approximate retail price of $40 for a 750-milliliter bottle, while The Collaboration Extra Anejo tequila costs more than $1,800 for a 750-milliliter bottle.
A tasting of two of AsomBroso’s tequilas revealed some unique flavors and a very high quality level, befitting the company’s reputation and the glowing reviews and awards it has garnered. La Rosa, true to its name, is pale pink with a fruity, floral, agave aroma, with a hint of roses. The agave was front and center in the taste as well, with fruit and dark chocolate notes. The Anejo Gran Reserva was even more impressive, with its light copper color, vanilla and caramel aroma with a hint of plum. On the palate it was heavier-bodied than La Rosa, slightly viscous, with agave, caramel, and dried fruit notes.
Gamarra is betting that there are also plenty of tequila lovers who want the opportunity to have an ownership stake in and be associated with his prestigious brand. There are numerous rich celebrities with tequila brands, like George Clooney or Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, but AsomBroso is offering to let average people join the club, albeit on a smaller scale.
AsomBroso has partnered with the equity crowdfunding platform startengine.com to raise capital for its next growth phase through the offering of stock shares. The company has already raised nearly $2 million for an up to $12 million offering, in which as little as $480 can be invested. At the $1,000 level additional rewards start, where investors also receive a bottle of the company’s El Platino blanco tequila. And while the company is described as family-run and owned, and Gamarra’s son Jarrett also is part of the business, Gamarra is savvy enough to also have spirits industry veteran Andrew Ulmer, formerly a vice president at SelvaRey Rum, on board as president. Gamarra is a seasoned businessman and somewhat of a serial entrepreneur, having launched and grown several ventures in the creative production industry in California, including Focus on Cars, an automotive prep company catering to the automotive advertising industry, and South Bay Studios, a production studio facility.
AsomBroso’s products are distributed in 25 states, with the goal of expanding distribution to all 50 US states, Canada, Mexico and over the next 18 months. It already is being distributed internationally in the UK, Japan, Germany and South Korea. It has a strong presence in large US retail wine and spirits chains, including Costco, Kroger, and Total Wine & More, and a reorder rate of 85%. AsomBroso also sells its products online through its website, which also offers special perks like loyalty points and membership in its “Agave Club” to receive discounts, free gifts, rights to first releases, and private tastings. The company has seen a 750% increase in revenues over the past year as the premium tequila market overall grows, with projections of nearly 75% additional market growth in the next five years.
And as Gamarra has learned, when it comes to making high-end aged tequila, time is definitely on his side.
