Type | Alcoholic beverage |
---|---|
Manufacturer | Agave Industries (India) Private Limited |
Introduced | 2011 |
Alcohol by volume | 40% |
Website | desmondji |
DesmondJi is a brand of alcoholic beverages manufactured by Agave India, founded by Desmond Nazareth. [1] [2] [3]
It provides Indian agave spirits, [4] artisanal sugarcane spirit, [2] mahua spirit and mahua liqueur as well as orange liqueurs. [5]
DesmondJi launched India's first agave-based liquor in April 2011, in Goa. [6] It is made from semi-wild agave growing on India's Deccan Plateau and produced at Agave India's micro-distillery that's located in the Chittoor district (present day Annamayya district) of Andhra Pradesh. [4] [7]
Pure Cane, made from sugarcane was released in 2013 and was the second category of spirits launched by DesmondJi. [8]
In 2018 DesmondJi launched mahua spirit and mahua liqueur made from the flowers of the mahua tree, that were sourced from the central Indian forest belt. [5]
In the 1980s Desmond Nazareth, an alum of IIT Madras, went to America to study filmmaking at Temple University, Philadelphia. During this time he began making cocktails for friends and family. [4] The Margarita was an indispensable part of his repertoire. When Desmond moved back to Mumbai, India, in the year 2000, he found that the main ingredient of the Margarita, Tequila, was both difficult and expensive to procure. [4]
Wondering why Tequila, which is made from the agave plant, was only made in Mexico, [2] but almost all equally well known alcoholic beverages have multiple producers in multiple countries; this is true for Whisky, Brandy, Rum, Gin, Vodka, Beer and Wine, [7] Desmond set about researching the plant and the conditions for its growth. On remembering having seen the plant somewhere in India during his childhood, Nazareth compared the agave-growing regions in Mexico to India and found a match in the Deccan Plateau, where he finally located the plant. [2]
In 2007, Desmond started Agave India, a craft distillery that uses Indian know-how and raw materials, and launched the brand DesmondJi in 2011. [5] [9]
Tequila is a distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila 65 km (40 mi) northwest of Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands of the central western Mexican state of Jalisco.
Mezcal, sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave.
Aguardente (Portuguese) or aguardiente (Spanish) is a type of distilled alcoholic spirit that contains between 29% and 60% alcohol by volume (ABV). It is a somewhat generic term that can refer to liquors made from various foods. It originates from and is typically consumed on the Iberian Peninsula and in Iberian America.
Santiago de Tequila is a Mexican town and municipality located in the state of Jalisco about 60 km from the city of Guadalajara. Tequila is best known as being the birthplace of the drink that bears its name, "tequila," which is made from the blue agave plant, native to this area. The heart of the plant contains natural sugars and was traditionally used to make a fermented drink. After the Spanish arrived, they took this fermented beverage and distilled it, producing the tequila known today. The popularity of the drink and the history behind it has made the town and the area surrounding it a World Heritage Site. It was also named a "Pueblo Mágico" in 2003 by the Mexican federal government.
Liquor or distilled beverage is an alcoholic drink produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include spirit, spirituous liquor or hard liquor. The distillation process concentrates the liquid to increase its alcohol by volume. As liquors contain significantly more alcohol (ethanol) than other alcoholic drinks, they are considered "harder." In North America, the term hard liquor is sometimes used to distinguish distilled alcoholic drinks from non-distilled ones, whereas the term spirits is more commonly used in the UK. Some examples of liquors include vodka, rum, gin, and tequila. Liquors are often aged in barrels, such as for the production of brandy and whiskey, or are infused with flavorings to form flavored liquors, such as absinthe.
Arrack is a distilled alcoholic drink typically produced in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, made from the fermented sap of coconut flowers or sugarcane, and also with grain or fruit depending upon the country of origin. It is sometimes spelled arak, or simply referred to as 'rack or 'rak. It is not to be confused with the anise-flavored distilled spirit called arak or araq. In many parts of India arrack is colloquially known as "desi daru".
Xtabentún is an anise liqueur made in Mexico's Yucatán region from anise seed and fermented honey produced by honey bees from the nectar of xtabentún flowers. Rum is then added to the anise and honey mixture. Because of the rum content, the xtabentún liqueur is sometimes called a "distilled honey" beverage, which is misleading, because the honey alcohol is fermented, not distilled. It is, nonetheless, a spirit beverage, since rum, a distilled product, is added. Distilleries still survive today in the Yucatán that produce the liqueur.
Sotol is a distilled spirit from the Chihuahuan desert sourced from the plants of the genus Dasylirion, most commonly: Dasylirion wheeleri, Dasylirion durangense,Dasylirion cedrosanum, and Dasylirion leiophyllum, less commonly with Dasylirion texanum and Dasylirion lucidum, plants that grow in the Chihuahuan desert of northern Mexico, New Mexico, Arizona, and west and central Texas. Sotol liquor is known as the state spirit of Chihuahua; however, the drink is also consumed in Durango and Coahuila. Sotol has its own appellation of origin since 2002, and may be produced only in Chihuahua, Coahuila and Durango. There are dozens of commercial examples available. Production of sotol spirits exists outside the Sotol Denomination of Origin in several regions such as Sonora where it is known as Palmilla, Oaxaca (Cucharillo), and the Texas Hill Country. With Sotol on the rise in terms of its popularity, more brands are beginning to come onto the scene.
Jose Cuervo is the best-selling brand of tequila, selling a fifth of the tequila consumed worldwide.
Dos Lunas is a line of 100% blue agave tequilas produced in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, by Dos Lunas Spirits, LLC, headquartered in El Paso, Texas. The brand has the first triple-distilled silver tequila, a month aged Reposado, 18 month aged Añejo and 10 year old Extra Añejo.
Don Julio is a brand of tequila produced in Mexico. It is the largest brand in value and eighth largest in volume. It is owned by the British-based multinational alcoholic beverage maker Diageo. It is distilled, manufactured and bottled by Tequila Don Julio, S.A. de C.V. from its corporate facility in the Colonia El Chichimeco district, in the city of Atotonilco El Alto, Jalisco, Mexico.
Sauza Tequila Import Company is a producer of tequila located in Tequila, a municipality of the state of Jalisco, Mexico and owned by Suntory Global Spirits, an subsidiary of Suntory Holdings of Osaka, Japan.
Sazerac Company, Inc. is a privately held American alcoholic beverage company headquartered in Metairie in the metropolitan area of New Orleans, Louisiana, but with its principal office in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is owned by billionaire William Goldring and his family. As of 2017, it operated nine distilleries, had 2,000 employees, and operated in 112 countries. It is one of the two largest spirits companies in the United States, with annual revenue of about $1 billion made from selling about 300 beverage brands.
Suntory Global Spirits, formerly known as Beam Suntory, Inc., is the American subsidiary of the Japanese beverage company Suntory. The company produces alcoholic beverages.
Tres Agaves is a brand of organic 100% de Agave Tequila and Margarita mixes. The Tequila is produced at Tres Agaves' distillery in the town of Amatitán located in Jalisco, Mexico.
Agave Wine originates from Mexico. It is a fortified wine made from fermented blue agave, and fortified by being blended with blanco tequila. It is similar to tequila, in that it is harvested from the same plant. Although the two alcoholic beverages come from the weber blue agave plant, the drinks have similar, but different flavors. Agave wine has a much lower alcohol content and can be sold by vendors in the United States without an official liquor license. Also like tequila; agave wine comes in 100% de agave and mixto versions. 100% de agave wine has long been used in traditional Mexican margaritas and is said to make margaritas that are as good if not better than traditional tequila based margaritas.
Proximo Spirits, Inc., is an American multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in Jersey City, New Jersey. It is a major distributor of tequila and other spirits, it is best known for Jose Cuervo, the world's largest-selling tequila brand.
Miske is an Ecuadorean distilled alcoholic beverage made from the sap of agave plants.