Tequila Corralejo
Crafted in Mexico
250 Years in Guanajuato
Hacienda Corralejo is the birthplace of Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costillo, renowned for launching the Mexican War of Independence. It was the first estate in Mexico to produce tequila as a commercial venture, and as such, we are among only a chosen few tequila distilleries granted the right to produce tequila in a province other than Jalisco.
Estate Grown Agave
Corralejo tequila is exclusively made with 100% Blue Weber agave, hand- harvested from our fields in the state of Guanajuato.
Because the majority of agave we use is estate-grown, we are able to ensure the highest quality from the very beginning. We start by selecting only stable and healthy shoots, or hijuelos, that are already 2-3 years old. We then plant them in a specialty soil blend that prevents imperfections common in the field.
Our agave takes 6-8 years to grow before becoming fully ripe for the harvest, or jima. At this point, our jimadors remove the leaves to leave just the piña, which is taken to the Hacienda to make into tequila.
Signature Fermentation
After 36 hours of slow-roasting in clay ovens, the agave piñas are pressed and their juice extracted. This juice is perfect between 11 and 12 brix, providing just enough sugar to ferment into alcohol. It’s then transferred into our 19,000 liter fermentation tanks where it will ferment with a specially formulated yeast strain, “LCORRA1,” for 36 hours.
This yeast strain is unique to our tequila and specially cultivated from the very first press of our estate agave. Developed in partnership with the Universidad de Guanajuato, it’s a crucial factor that gives us more control over the final flavors and aromas of our tequilas, and instills a true sense of place.
After the jima, or harvest, the agave piñas are slow-cooked for 36 hours in stone clay ovens at the Hacienda Corralejo, then rested for 12 hours in the traditional way.
Double Distillation & Oak Barrel Aging
All of our tequilas go through the Charentais method of double distillation, rare in the tequila industry. The first distillation takes place in a continuous still, or column still. The second distillation takes place in an Alembic copper pot still, imported from Tomelloso, Spain. The second distillation results in tequila that is refined and wonderfully aromatic.
While our Blanco is unaged and bottled fresh from the Hacienda’s distillery, Corralejo Reposado and Añejo are both aged in charred oak barrels, for four months and one year respectively, which imparts additional spice flavors and a beautiful golden hue.
Hacienda Corralejo employs the 400-year-old Charentais method of distillation, the same method perfected by the French in distilling Cognac, which uniquely allows for exceptional retention of aroma and flavor.
Bottled In‑House
Continuing our commitment to complete process oversight, we bottle all our tequilas on our in-house bottling line, in bottles themselves made within the Hacienda’s brick walls. No detail of our process is rushed or skipped over, keeping true to the tequila tradition established at the Hacienda 250 years ago. Were Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla alive today, we imagine him proud to enjoy a glass of Corralejo tequila from his birthplace. Or perhaps we’d surprise him with a jalapeño margarita!
Proudly Crafted in Guanajuato
For nearly 250 years, the distillation methods of Hacienda Corralejo have been preserved, refined, and developed by our local community into a tradition of tequila. A tradition of skilled craftsmanship only attainable by master artisans of tequila making.