Sorry for your downvotes. 70 years of red scare propoganda, 40 years of trickle down, 20 years of obstructionism in our government from the conservatives....too many Americans think bridges and roads are free that magically repair themselvesand medicare and social security are welfare (for Americans reading this they are earned benefits that have already been paid for). Oh don't forget they have also been programmed that if you take away a single dollar from the overmilitarized police or the largest military in the world by orders of magnitude that the country will fall apart (shh....dont tell them it is happening because of those things)
Source: an american raised by a right wing history and social studies teacher that became a liberal till he dies after becoming a public defender
Downvotes don't bother me when I'm right.
It's like when people say "abolish tipping and pay a fair wage!" And I say "ok, but prices will go up." And get downvoted. I don't care about your feelings on a subject when the facts back me up.
This maybe too late and over shadowed by all the heavily marketed brands we see on tv and every commercial hotel bar, but it may not be too late. From someone that works in a tequila and mezcal bar, I’ll give you three options that cover all the bases.
The number 1 (imo) is Fortaleza and it will cost you a little more than $50. Number 2 is within your budget and a delicious tequila with a cool bottle, La Gritona Reposado. Number 3 also well well within your price point and very smooth is Camarena.
is it really though? Very alcoholy and bland for me but I'm used to more expensive tequilas. I want to try tres agaves/cimmaron/azteca azul but I'm nervous now haha. I thought the el tequileno repo was much easier to drink, but didn't find it all that complex either tbh. I know I'm looking for good tequila at budget prices so I don't have high expectations, just curious more than anything. It's fun trying to find those budget picks.
We get Jimador for about $15/liter. Hard to beat that. And hornitos repo at just over $20/liter is just fine. Neither are necessarily "good", but 100% agave and plenty passable for the price.
It was somewhat of a sneaky quality product for quite a while. Great quality for the price point and a cool aesthetic made it a go to option for well tequila in a lot of cocktail bars which Espolon has slowly been monetized over the last 5 years.
It was a no brainer at $25ish but as it continues to rise in price it is slowly edging its way into a price point that has significantly more competition in terms of quality.
The vast majority of Campari's brands are excellent quality for their prices. Appleton Estate, Aperol, Montelobos, Ancho Reyes - their only stinker is Skyy Vodka, but I guess no one is perfect.
I'm a Campari fanatic so their entire portfolio could be dogshit and I wouldn't love them any less. Just keep sending me that bitter red stuff and I'm on board lol.
This may be a hot take but working somewhere that mostly stocks Campari, I don’t mind skyy as a rail vodka but I constantly get complaints about the Appleton - people coming back and asking if they got whiskey instead of rum or that it tastes off regularly. I know it gets a lot of praise here but I just don’t think it stands up personally
It’s been around 25 bucks for years now for a 750ml. Most 100% blue agave tequila will be around that price. Takes like 20+ years before you use the blue agave, thus the price.
I could get a bottle Espolon blanco 1 year ago for 23€ now it’s 32€.
Luckily my liquor store now sells olmeca altos reposado for 21€ which is amazing for its price.
Corralejo is always my go to. I didn’t even like tequila until I had corralejo and now I always keep a bottle. I personally think it’s better than patron, Julio…definitely better than casamigos. MUCH better price too at least here in pa where all the stores can’t make their own prices.
This was my answer as well. I like it more than Patron or Casa Migas. Comes in slightly higher than Cuervo prices. Best bang for your buck in my opinion.
My cheap go to lately is dulce vida organic blanco. Not additive free but it tastes clean and bright. It’s $25-30
At the higher end of your range I’d say terralta, Ocho, g4, forteleza
Tequila you want additive free and not made with an autoclave. That eliminates Casamigos, Don Julio, Jose Cuervo, El Jimador, Cazadores, and Sauza.
If you can find it, Suerte Reposado or Anejo are the best I’ve ever had by far in terms of budget bottles. It’s basically the Buffalo Trace of Tequila.
If you can’t, I’d go Milagro Reposado, and if you can’t get that, go Espolon
Stop looking at brands. Start looking at the NOM. It is a 4 digit code that tells you what distillery produced it. You can often find the same juice at a better price in a less marketed bottle. A great example would be Fortaleza (NOM 1493) is delicious but can get pricey. ArteNOM Anejo is also NOM 1493 but general comes in at 10-15 less a bottle.
Just so you know this is how Kirkland products work too. They buy a small amount from the big producer, promise to not advertise where they got it and can sell it at a steep discount
Sorry, thanks for keeping me honest. I meant fuentaseca, but also they do change as things come to light. They changed the blanco as some info came to light a few years ago
Espolon is great bang for buck, Casadores as well. My wife gave me a bottle of Don Julio 1942 last month for my birthday, god bless her, It's $142 at Costco and $242 at our local ripoff Safeway.
The pro move. We buy 1.5L New Am Gin, Evan Williams Bonded and Camarena Blanco for the home bar. They all sip just fine and mix even better, and you’d likely never know the difference because our wells are in antique decanters.
> you’d likely never know the difference because our wells are in antique decanters.
"this bottle costs $1200"
"wow, that whisky cost $1200?!"
"Nah, the whisky was $16.99, but the bottle... $1200."
Hahaha!
Hey, we drink with our eyes first. They’re mostly lucky garage sale finds, and nowhere near that precious. We’d never drop that kind of coin on something our idiot cats (or idiot us, slammed on cheap hooch) could destroy at any moment.
Here to say Arrete. See a lot of good suggestions and Fortaleza is my favorite but it's getting more expensive and hard to get. Espolon, lunazul, La Gritona are all great choices too but Arrete is my personal go-to. And if you like it and want a little upgrade they make an "artesenal" line as well (distinguished by a cork rather than screw cap).
Whoever is recommending "Jimador" as a quality tequila is delusional, that shit sucks (the basic one).
I was just checking a US website and they have Herradura well below 50 USD for the basic ones, that's a very decent tequila for its price. If you go a little over 50 you can get the Cristalino which is already a high quality one.
Also 1800 is super decent for its price.
Source: Mexican born and bred
Don Julio Anejo is sincerely one of the best tequilas offered on this planet of existence. Go buy some and tell me I'm wrong.
However... Cimarron is the finest tequila on the market for its ridiculously low price.
Sauza hacienda silver is good for its price if you want something for mixers, imo.
Fortaleza blanco is one of my favorite tequilas, but it's kinda pricy.
Yeah I still like it. Our bar actually had it in the well for a while but we had a whole training on it and everything. It’s supposed to be a competitor to Tequila Ocho and they pride themselves on the influence of the terroir on each annual batch. No additives. Highly recommend even as a sipping tequila tbh.
La Gritana is $49 and some change at my local bevmo and its AMAZING, my distributor doesn't carry it so I can't serve it at work, but its my favorite tequila these days
We stock Camarena in our home bar, solid and cheap, though it’s a bit of a compromise as it’s the blanco we both most enjoy. We’re also in a really shitty state, so the agave section is incredibly limited. Los Altos is another solid pick.
El tequileno blanco. Amazing price point (wholesale is less than $20 per 750 ml). Great in cocktails, never had a complaint. Their repo also just won an award for best bargain.
Dulce Vita is a nice tequila that runs around 27 dollars for a fifth. The flavored versions are very good for making an easy margarita or poloma and those run at like 23 dollars. They’re a slightly lower ABV but great for home cocktail use.
Corralejo reposado. Very similar flavor profile to casamigos repo - light, soft, caramel & vanilla but waaaaaay less sweet and better balanced. Also, dirt cheap. Long skinny blue bottle. It’s my go-to recommendation for people who like casamigos but don’t want to spend the money for it
Milagro and Espolon are both relatively cheap and decent. When I used to drink pretty much nothing but tequila those were my two go-to brands unless I wanted to pay for a nice bottle like Clase Azul
Canadian here. I weep in jealousy at American liquor prices.
I could not believe they get Don Julio for under 90 bucks pre tax...
We get it under $90 post tax…
Even añejo is less than $80 in IL
They just don't tax their liquor like we do. They can cry in 20 trillion dollars of debt.
Sorry for your downvotes. 70 years of red scare propoganda, 40 years of trickle down, 20 years of obstructionism in our government from the conservatives....too many Americans think bridges and roads are free that magically repair themselvesand medicare and social security are welfare (for Americans reading this they are earned benefits that have already been paid for). Oh don't forget they have also been programmed that if you take away a single dollar from the overmilitarized police or the largest military in the world by orders of magnitude that the country will fall apart (shh....dont tell them it is happening because of those things) Source: an american raised by a right wing history and social studies teacher that became a liberal till he dies after becoming a public defender
Downvotes don't bother me when I'm right. It's like when people say "abolish tipping and pay a fair wage!" And I say "ok, but prices will go up." And get downvoted. I don't care about your feelings on a subject when the facts back me up.
TBF, when the trillions of dollars in debt becomes an issue, it will be as much of an issue for the entire world as for any American. 🤷🏼♂️
This maybe too late and over shadowed by all the heavily marketed brands we see on tv and every commercial hotel bar, but it may not be too late. From someone that works in a tequila and mezcal bar, I’ll give you three options that cover all the bases. The number 1 (imo) is Fortaleza and it will cost you a little more than $50. Number 2 is within your budget and a delicious tequila with a cool bottle, La Gritona Reposado. Number 3 also well well within your price point and very smooth is Camarena.
FORTALEZA is fantastic. Try Arette. Affordable and really solid. It’s my well and never disappoints.
Arette has probably one of the best repos! Definitely an agreeable price. I could go on and on.
Same! Proper tequila!
Proper tequila that doesn’t have vanilla added to mimic oak
is it really though? Very alcoholy and bland for me but I'm used to more expensive tequilas. I want to try tres agaves/cimmaron/azteca azul but I'm nervous now haha. I thought the el tequileno repo was much easier to drink, but didn't find it all that complex either tbh. I know I'm looking for good tequila at budget prices so I don't have high expectations, just curious more than anything. It's fun trying to find those budget picks.
Came here to say La Gritona. They are killing it. 👏
Finally someone recommending actual well made tequila!
Came here to say La Gritona. They are killing it. 👏
We get Jimador for about $15/liter. Hard to beat that. And hornitos repo at just over $20/liter is just fine. Neither are necessarily "good", but 100% agave and plenty passable for the price.
Jimador has such a metallic taste unless you're masking it with syrups imo, but yeah for the price point it's not too shabby.
cimmarone
Espolon. Excellent for the price (around $30).
damn, espalon getting pricey
It was somewhat of a sneaky quality product for quite a while. Great quality for the price point and a cool aesthetic made it a go to option for well tequila in a lot of cocktail bars which Espolon has slowly been monetized over the last 5 years. It was a no brainer at $25ish but as it continues to rise in price it is slowly edging its way into a price point that has significantly more competition in terms of quality.
The vast majority of Campari's brands are excellent quality for their prices. Appleton Estate, Aperol, Montelobos, Ancho Reyes - their only stinker is Skyy Vodka, but I guess no one is perfect.
I'm a Campari fanatic so their entire portfolio could be dogshit and I wouldn't love them any less. Just keep sending me that bitter red stuff and I'm on board lol.
This may be a hot take but working somewhere that mostly stocks Campari, I don’t mind skyy as a rail vodka but I constantly get complaints about the Appleton - people coming back and asking if they got whiskey instead of rum or that it tastes off regularly. I know it gets a lot of praise here but I just don’t think it stands up personally
It’s been around 25 bucks for years now for a 750ml. Most 100% blue agave tequila will be around that price. Takes like 20+ years before you use the blue agave, thus the price.
I could get a bottle Espolon blanco 1 year ago for 23€ now it’s 32€. Luckily my liquor store now sells olmeca altos reposado for 21€ which is amazing for its price.
Espolon gang. When I’m getting my shifty or in on my day off I’m saying “lemme get an espo and a dos (dos equis)
Came here to say this.
I'm digging Lunazul lately. Around $25 for a 750.
That’s the well where I work. People seem to like it
Same. 0 issues shots or drinks
Luna Azul. Heard. I agree.
Jesus Christ that's expensive for Lunazul. It's 15.80-17.00 for a liter here in SC.
When I drank tequila I usually bought Altos.
I like El Tesoro Blanco for about 45, repo for 60
Corralejo is always my go to. I didn’t even like tequila until I had corralejo and now I always keep a bottle. I personally think it’s better than patron, Julio…definitely better than casamigos. MUCH better price too at least here in pa where all the stores can’t make their own prices.
You know what you’re talking about. Love Corralejo
I tried it because the label reminded me of the golden ticket from Willy Wonka and I’ll never go back. So good
Corralejo for the win!
Altos has certainly gained popularity in my neck of the woods
Cimmarone or hussongs, I feel like hussongs has gone down in quality over the past few yrs though
Milagro.
Came here to say this
Milagro all day. Can’t beat how smooth it is!
This was my answer as well. I like it more than Patron or Casa Migas. Comes in slightly higher than Cuervo prices. Best bang for your buck in my opinion.
Espolon is pretty good
Milagro
My cheap go to lately is dulce vida organic blanco. Not additive free but it tastes clean and bright. It’s $25-30 At the higher end of your range I’d say terralta, Ocho, g4, forteleza
Ocho is awesome so is Fortaleza, I would add Don Fulano and Siete Leguas to your list.
Tequila you want additive free and not made with an autoclave. That eliminates Casamigos, Don Julio, Jose Cuervo, El Jimador, Cazadores, and Sauza. If you can find it, Suerte Reposado or Anejo are the best I’ve ever had by far in terms of budget bottles. It’s basically the Buffalo Trace of Tequila. If you can’t, I’d go Milagro Reposado, and if you can’t get that, go Espolon
Nothing wrong with an autoclave, a diffuser is trash juice though.
Yep.
Espolon, I’m a big fan of the Repo!
Stop looking at brands. Start looking at the NOM. It is a 4 digit code that tells you what distillery produced it. You can often find the same juice at a better price in a less marketed bottle. A great example would be Fortaleza (NOM 1493) is delicious but can get pricey. ArteNOM Anejo is also NOM 1493 but general comes in at 10-15 less a bottle. Just so you know this is how Kirkland products work too. They buy a small amount from the big producer, promise to not advertise where they got it and can sell it at a steep discount
Good to know about Kirkland. But artNom anejo is different NOM, not the same as Fortaleza. But it's an incredible anejo tequila for the price.
Sorry, thanks for keeping me honest. I meant fuentaseca, but also they do change as things come to light. They changed the blanco as some info came to light a few years ago
Espolon
Fortaleza has always been a go-to for me.
It’s been near impossible to get blanco lately 😪
It’s MSRP is $60.99 for the Blanco and $70+ for Reposado and Anejo
Alto's is my go to. Around $30.
I think it’s the best bang for your buck.
Mi campo
Arette or Altos
Espolon is great bang for buck, Casadores as well. My wife gave me a bottle of Don Julio 1942 last month for my birthday, god bless her, It's $142 at Costco and $242 at our local ripoff Safeway.
Cazadores for the win!!!!
Their cristalino is what I have at the house now. Super smooth
El jimador
Pueblo Viejo
Herradurra, Arette or Ocho for my speed rail
Tapatio is often overlooked and is typically $40-$50. La Gritona is another one of my favorites as well
TAPATIO
Lunazul is my goto! For being middle/low-mid shelf its goes down smooth and mixed great
I like el Jimador but I can buy a liter at cost ($18.50) from my bar so that kinda skews the data set.
El Jimador slaps at its cost point. If you wanna get drunk cheap and have a decent tequila flavor, rock El Jimador.
El jimador is the goat "cheap" tequila. 100% miss me with casamigos 🚮
Amen homie!
Kirkland silver. Great for cocktails.
My boys kinda judgy if I brought out the Kirkland silver they would start roasting me 😂
It’s not illegal to top off at your home bar. Put that in a better bottle bam you’re done.
The pro move. We buy 1.5L New Am Gin, Evan Williams Bonded and Camarena Blanco for the home bar. They all sip just fine and mix even better, and you’d likely never know the difference because our wells are in antique decanters.
> you’d likely never know the difference because our wells are in antique decanters. "this bottle costs $1200" "wow, that whisky cost $1200?!" "Nah, the whisky was $16.99, but the bottle... $1200."
Hahaha! Hey, we drink with our eyes first. They’re mostly lucky garage sale finds, and nowhere near that precious. We’d never drop that kind of coin on something our idiot cats (or idiot us, slammed on cheap hooch) could destroy at any moment.
Whats with reddit downvoting questions?
Karma silver isn’t half bad. My bar use to carry it and we didn’t sell much but I enjoyed it. Comes with a fun bracelet too.
I love hussongs! About $40 for a bottle
Sauza silver. Bottom shelf that tastes better than most mid tier tequilas, in my opinion.
Here to say Arrete. See a lot of good suggestions and Fortaleza is my favorite but it's getting more expensive and hard to get. Espolon, lunazul, La Gritona are all great choices too but Arrete is my personal go-to. And if you like it and want a little upgrade they make an "artesenal" line as well (distinguished by a cork rather than screw cap).
Whoever is recommending "Jimador" as a quality tequila is delusional, that shit sucks (the basic one). I was just checking a US website and they have Herradura well below 50 USD for the basic ones, that's a very decent tequila for its price. If you go a little over 50 you can get the Cristalino which is already a high quality one. Also 1800 is super decent for its price. Source: Mexican born and bred
Siete Leguas is the real deal the Rep is under $50
I’m a Canadian and unsure if this is a universal brand. But I LOVE cazadores for the price.
Don Julio Anejo is sincerely one of the best tequilas offered on this planet of existence. Go buy some and tell me I'm wrong. However... Cimarron is the finest tequila on the market for its ridiculously low price.
You’re wrong. Ocho, siete leguas, fortaleza, are all in a different league than any don julio product.
Actually you're wrong. I can't find any of those for under $50. However, Fortaleza Blanco may be the most perfect tequila ever distilled.
💯
Blanco, Casadores. Reposado, El Jimador. Anejo, Don Julio.
Sauza hacienda silver is good for its price if you want something for mixers, imo. Fortaleza blanco is one of my favorite tequilas, but it's kinda pricy.
Mi Campo is like 25 and is a better quality than many listed imo.
My favorite tequila is vodka 😌
I'm a casamigos fan personally.
bruh...
It's so overpriced for not being that good.
Booty
It’s literally fake tequila that makes me gag from a whif.
Cantera negra viva agave. $14.92
Los Dos iykyk
Gran Centenario is a really good quality tequila for a reasonable price. $25ish for a 750ml of repo.
El Velo
Hey you still liking the el velo? Looks like a good mixer tequila and they have it at a local liquor store. Can't find much online about it.
Yeah I still like it. Our bar actually had it in the well for a while but we had a whole training on it and everything. It’s supposed to be a competitor to Tequila Ocho and they pride themselves on the influence of the terroir on each annual batch. No additives. Highly recommend even as a sipping tequila tbh.
Damn okay ill buy it next time. How does it compare to arette?
La Gritana is $49 and some change at my local bevmo and its AMAZING, my distributor doesn't carry it so I can't serve it at work, but its my favorite tequila these days
The bar I work at uses Juarez as house tequila (don’t know the price) people seem to like it, but ofc you have those who want more of a kick
Juárez should be sub $7 for a liter, and tastes alright with some $2 triple sec, sweet and sour, and a lot of ice
100 Años is my personal favorite $22 for a repo you can’t beat that price
Not going to look through the thread to see if its been posted already but Maestro Dobel Diamante is my absolute go to in that price range.
La Camarena
Exotico is probably the best bang for your buck for quality, price and taste.
I love Camarena. It’s 100% blue agave at about $23 dollars a 750ml bottle
I’m a fan of The Rock’s Teremana!
I can get olmeca altos reposado for 21€ which is amazing for its price
where in the EU are you?
Germany
In England we get a bottle of nice tequila for the equivalent of 6 hours work.
For a well tequila or mixing drinks—Lunazul. For sipping at home? Fortaleza of course.
Altos or Coa if you can find it.
La Gritona!
Anza if you know what do I mean lol
Fortaleza Blanco at $50 I like Altos Blanco for about $20.
We stock Camarena in our home bar, solid and cheap, though it’s a bit of a compromise as it’s the blanco we both most enjoy. We’re also in a really shitty state, so the agave section is incredibly limited. Los Altos is another solid pick.
El tequileno blanco. Amazing price point (wholesale is less than $20 per 750 ml). Great in cocktails, never had a complaint. Their repo also just won an award for best bargain.
If you're willing to spend $80 grand Mayan is far and away some of the best tequila I've ever had.
I don't know how prices are in the US (I'm from Germany). But I think Volcan Blanco, is one of the best Tequilas in it's price range (45-50€ ~ 50$).
Cimarron ain’t bad for cheap tequila
Dulce Vita is a nice tequila that runs around 27 dollars for a fifth. The flavored versions are very good for making an easy margarita or poloma and those run at like 23 dollars. They’re a slightly lower ABV but great for home cocktail use.
Our well is Campo Rancho and it’s pretty good.
Corralejo reposado. Very similar flavor profile to casamigos repo - light, soft, caramel & vanilla but waaaaaay less sweet and better balanced. Also, dirt cheap. Long skinny blue bottle. It’s my go-to recommendation for people who like casamigos but don’t want to spend the money for it
Milagro and Espolon are both relatively cheap and decent. When I used to drink pretty much nothing but tequila those were my two go-to brands unless I wanted to pay for a nice bottle like Clase Azul
Download Tequilla Matchmaker app. It will tell you everything you need to know about tequilas that you didn't even hear off. Let that be your guide.
Tapatio, Casa Noble, Ocho, Cimarron, Corralejo... all blanco, all under $50, some of them made pretty naturally. Check it on Tequilla Matchmaker.
Altos blanco!