Choose your favorite Casa Noble tequila expression: Crystal, Reposado, Añejo, Single Barrel Reposado, or Single Barrel Añejo.

July 24 marked National Tequila Day. No stranger to a celebration, Laura Baddish of the Baddish Group invited a selection of online media guests to sample the mighty fine Casa Noble Tequila in four of its expressions at the aptly named Agave in Greenwich Village. The staff delighted us with countless small bites — succulent albóndigas (meatballs); cheesy, savory quesadillas; piquant and rich guacamole. Honestly, there was too much good food being passed around the intimate back-room dining table, but who are we to turn down a fiesta, especially when accompanied by some of the smoothest and mixable tequilas on the market? Jay Silverman, Agave’s beverage director, after a few introductory words about the production of Casa Noble tequila, offered us a classic margarita made with the youngest expression, Casa Noble Crystal. The agave plants, from which tequila is distilled, are not harvested until they are at least twelve years old, so the plants have had more time to to grow and develop fuller flavors. Jay asked us to sip the Crystal by itself, so when we did, we discovered full-roasted agave flavor. It went down easy and was utterly delightful. The margarita allowed this agave flavor to shine through, and it paired perfectly with the guacamole and chips, only whetting our appetites for more cocktails. But until then, we sipped the other two standard expressions: reposado and añejo. We were shocked — in a good way — by the reposado’s natural candylike sweetness. This expression will be finding its way on our shelves so we can craft some original cocktails with it during the rest of the summer. What surprised us even more, though, were the sweet and smooth sips from the añejo tequila. This aged beauty makes for a wonderful after-dinner digestivo, and was a favorite among the reporters and writers present.

For those of you unfamiliar with Casa Noble, Jose “Pepe” Hermosillo Brooks, a co-owner and master distiller, had a mission. He wanted his tequila to, in Laura Baddish’s words, “speak of luxury, of refined pottery and architecture.” Many of us came to tequila downing shot glass after shot glass of the not-so-pure stuff. Casa Noble aims much higher. It is relatable to those in search of refinement, and flavor that’s not compromised by unthoughtful distillation and aging. The bottles, in their array of noble colors such as silver, purple, deep blue, black, and sky blue, glow with the promise of something very special. One limited-edition expression, an aged single-barrel extra añejo mind-blower, is sponsored by the one and only Carlos Santana, a board member who approached Casa Noble with the idea of selling this special tequila with profits going to Milagro, his charitable foundation. Five hundred bottles were sold at $500 each. That’s a lot of dinero. Very special indeed.

Casa Noble joven tequila, with tangerine, lime, chipotle, and sage

By the way, our second cocktail proved to be a winner. Made with joven tequila (aged for six weeks in French white oak barrels), this collins-sized drink buzzed our taste buds with tangerine juice, chipotle, lime, and sage. We all wished we could have another, but by the end of the tasting, we could barely text and tweet.

Casa Noble Organic Margarita

Recipes

Casa Noble Organic Margarita
(courtesy of Casa Noble)

Ingredients

2 ounces Casa Noble Crystal Tequila
1 ounce fresh lime juice
3/4 ounce La Sierra Agave Nectar
lime wheel, as garnish
salt rim (optional)

Method
Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake, strain and serve up or on the rocks, Garnish with a lime wheel. To salt rim, moisten rim of glass with lime, gently roll in a plate of kosher salt.

Casa Noble Paloma
(courtesy of Casa Noble)

Ingredients
2 ounces Casa Noble Reposado Tequila
fresh grapefruit juice
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
splash of fizz (soda, seltzer)

Method
Pour the the Casa Noble Reposado Tequila into a glass and squeeze in the fresh lime juice. Add ice and fill with the fresh grapefruit juice and fizz. Stir and enjoy.

Casa Noble Añejo Casa Royal
(courtesy of Casa Noble)

Ingredients
2 ounces Casa Noble Añejo Tequila
1/2 ounce triple sec
2 ounces fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce champagne or prosecco

MethodShake first three ingredients in ice and strain into a margarita or rocks glass filled with ice with an optional salt rim. Float champagne on top.