The Orendain family has been involved in producing tequila since 1840, when Doña Elisa Orendain and her husband owned a distillery called La Chiripa, where their nephew Don Eduardo Orendain worked. His grandson Don Eduardo Orendain Gonzalez established his own company upon purchasing a simple distillery in 1926 in Tequila, Jalisco after previously producing Orendain Tequila around the corner at El Llano (current home of Arette Tequila produced by his sons Eduardo and Jaime Orendain Gonzalez) since 1900. This new(er!) distillery is now known as Casa Mexicana, and is the home of Tequila Orendain, Gran Orendain, Ollitas, and others. We bring in the latter two, produced by Marcela Orendain Gonzalez, sister of Jaime and Eduardo.Gran Orendain tequilas use family estate-grown agaves harvested at 7-8 years of age from their own estate, a single plantation of 5000 hectares of Blue Agave fields on the Hill of Tepecoste on the edge of the town of Tequila, cooked in brick ovens at Casa Mexicana at low temperature for a minimum of 48 hours. They ferment in stainless steel for 72 hours, and triple-distill in stainless steel pot stills. Their blancos are rested in stainless steel, followed by aging in French oak for their reposados and beyond."Our magnum opus is aged in French oak barrels for 84 months or more, bottled at 40% ABV in a French decanter, and placed in a commemorative gift box. Intense flavours and aromas of cooked agave, maple, and vanilla, with wood and herbal nuances, a huge mouthfeel, and a long beautiful finish."
