Teremana, Teremana, Teremana. There, I said it three times, now isn’t Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson supposed to appear and suck me into a computer game? Or am I confusing Jumanji with Beetlejuice? Either way, I’d rather he made me a margarita, just saying…
But why the cocktail connection? Because when he’s not fake marrying Alison Hammond on This Morning or dangling from CGI skyscrapers, The Rock has been turning his talents to tequila-making. He’s the latest in a growing line of mega-watt celebs who dabble in agave, including Kendall Jenner, Mark Wahlberg, LeBron James, Rita Ora, Carlos Santana, and let’s not forget the man who started the entire trend, George Clooney.
George is the reason so many celebs have jumped on the tequila bandwagon, founding Casamigos in 2013 with a couple of buddies and selling it four years later for $1billion (£770m). Like he needs the money, well… he certainly doesn’t now. And while the once unsinkable gin category saw a decline of -14% last year, US tequila fever is rubbing off on us over here, as premium tequila was buoyant last year at +4% and growing.
That’s good news for Dwayne then, whose tequila is called Teremana, in case you didn’t get the memo from my opening sentence.
‘Tere’ is derived from the Latin for ‘earth’ and ‘Mana’ is the Polynesian word for ‘spirit’, so it means ‘spirit of the earth’. And how’s this for the pull of star power, within its first year of launching in the US it sold 12 million bottles.
I know, Kevin Hart could never. I mean that literally, Hart also has his own tequila brand, under the name of Gran Coramino, and at the risk of repeating myself, he could never.
How do I know? Because research from the QR Code Generator assessed Google search information and Instagram follower counts of 150 celebrity brands, creating an overall score as to how popular they are. The study took the average number of monthly searches for the brands, including the brand name combined with the celebrity name alongside it, generating a score out of 100.
How did they perform? Well, Hart’s name came way below The Rock’s on the survey, with an 80.7 net score vs 94.8. The winner was Kendall Kenner with her 818 Tequila, with a net score of 95.4, significantly above George Clooney’s at 90.5.
But forget Instagram likes and search data for a minute, how does the quality of the tequilas stack up? Allow me to be the judge of that…
Before I get into that though, what exactly is tequila? Good question. It’s a spirit made by fermenting and distilling the Blue Weber agave, a cactus-like plant native to the state of Jalisco in Mexico. The town of Tequila is within that state, hence the name.
There are actually 166 species of agave, yet tequila must legally be made from blue agave. The process involves harvesting the plant (which takes 7 years to mature), cooking, fermenting, distilling and sometimes ageing it in barrels. And remember, any spirit made from other species of agave is called Mezcal.
818
Kendall Jenner named her tequila after her area code in Calabasas, California, who knew? So successful was its UK launch that sales shot 150% over forecast within the first 12 days. This year, Tesco is the first supermarket to stock it, having sold 1.2 million bottles of tequila in 2023, a 28% increase on the year before. 818 is one of the brands that have brought tequila to a whole new generation of fans. Tesco sell 818 for £43, so it isn’t cheap, but what does it taste like?
Nose: Floral, citrus blossom, a touch of anise, nectarine stone with a lactic, creamy note.
Palate: Soft and herbaceous with caraway seed and pink peppercorn, a smooth texture, balance and sweetness with a Ceylon tea and celery finish.
Conclusion: This is an entry-level and contemporary tequila with a softness, sweetness and plenty of blossomy characters to draw newbies into the category.
Best For: Anyone getting into tequila who wants a soft landing.
Best Serve: Spicy Margarita.
Casamigos
Do people still call him Gorgeous George? Anyhoo, this tequila was an ‘accidental brand’ (apparently), originally only intended for George and his friends. But when they found themselves ordering 1,000 bottles a year, they knew they had to start producing more. Casamigos, which is a mashup of ‘casa’ and ‘amigos’, aka ‘house of friends’, was the fastest-selling spirits brand of 2022, but what does it taste like?
Nose: Pronounced earthiness, green peppercorns, cacao nibs, vegetal, leafy, tropical fruits, lime zest and green olives.
Palate: Grassy, green peppercorns, plantain, savoury, vegetal, light sweetness, leafy bitterness, complex, brined green olives and fresh dill.
Conclusion: A more grown-up style with an earthy, vegetal profile and a line of sweetness running through it to keep it crowd-pleasing.
Best For: Anyone who dabbles in tequila who wants a more grown-up experience
Best Serve: Paloma.
Casa Noble
For anyone out of the loop, Carlos Santana is a famous Mexican guitarist who performed at Woodstock alongside the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. He’s legit rockstar royalty and was really the first celebrity to collaborate with a spirits brand, when he bought a stake in Casa Noble in 2011. They were also one of the first brands to focus on premium tequila, not the stuff you shoot that feels like it’s bleaching your insides. Lots of firsts, but what does it taste like?
Nose: Fennel pollen and fudge with nuances of butter, biscuit, white pepper, vegetal notes, chestnut and earthy potato.
Palate: An initial sweet note is followed by black pepper, blonde toffee, herbaceous and lightly bitter notes, baking spice, celery and preserved lemon.
Conclusion: Spiced and buttery flavour profile,this is one for tequila aficionados.
Best For: Tequila enthusiasts who want to sip something authentic.
Best Serve: Neat.
Teremana
The Fast & The Furious, The Mummy, Jumanji, Jungle Cruise, Skyscraper, it may just sound like I’m listing family movies. I am, but they all star the Founder of Teremana tequila, The Rock. Heads up though, he actually refers to himself as Dwayne Johnson when it comes to this project, just in case you ever meet him. Dwayne set up the brand in 2020, taking an active role in selecting the final spirit after sampling 113 distillations. Now that’s dedication, but what does it taste like?
Nose: Earthy, lemon posset, bright with notes of grapefruit, hay, hawthorne and gentian.
Palate: Citrussy, bright and zesty with notes of white pepper, baking spices with a smooth and linear finish of mandarin and palma violets.
Conclusion: Zesty, citrussy and lively tequila which is perfect for fruit-based cocktails.
Best For: Lovers of tequila-based cocktails looking for an uplifting style of tequila.
Best Serve: The People’s Margarita (a regular Margarita with a dash of pineapple juice). Or, simply serve on The Rock.