Gran Centenario Reposado Tequila Review

Gran Centenario Reposado Tequila is a tasty, budget-friendly sipper, though the spirit works even better in elevated Margaritas.

Tasting Notes 

Color: Deep gold

Nose: Aromatic and rich, with notes of agave and fruit (rather than an herbaceous lowland agave quality). Hints of kiwi, gooseberry, and a light caramel character.

Palate: Opens round and rich (some might say “smooth”), with a hint of spice. At the mid-palate, it is medium-bodied with an emphasis on agave, toasted oak, and a trace of demerara sugar. At the back of the mouth, the fresh agave character continues to dominate, with a citrus/lemon zest vibe at the back of the throat along with the spice/bite of oak.

Finish: A long, lingering finish with a bit of oak “bite,” grass, citrus, orange peel, and black pepper

Our Review

The company has roots going back to 1857 and tavern owner and distiller Lazaro Gallardo. While a lot has changed for the brand (it’s now managed by Proximo Spirits and distilled at Casa Cuervo, but is still considered family-owned), it has a lot more historic credibility than, say, a celebrity vanity brand. “It’s still the number-one seller in Mexico” says Jaime Salas, an agave advocacy leader at Proximo Spirits, which handles the brand in the U.S. “While Mexico was blanco-tequila-focused for the most part, say, about seven years ago, these days reposados are very popular.”

The first iteration of Gran Centenario dates to 1895, named as a nod to the then-upcoming centennial for Mexican independence. Salas insists it's still the same recipe behind today’s bottles, but clearly some stuff had to change: the agave now cooks in an steam-pressure autoclave (it’s first still milled with a roller, like in the old days), is fermented in huge steel tanks, and aged in new charred oak instead of the ex-bourbon barrels popular with many distilleries. Salas says Gran Centenario still harvests its highland agave at 10 to 12 years (many lower-end brands will harvest younger plants to save money in production). Obviously, the scale of production is much, much bigger. 

Intriguingly (especially given its reasonable price point), Gran Centenario incorporates a blend of batches and ages in its tequila to create its distinctive flavor profile. While that seems like a technique ordinarily used by higher-end brands to add complexity (or to accurately claim that extra-aged product is incorporated into a younger non-age statement spirit), it’s something this tequila label does as a matter of course. It also means that what goes into the reposado and anejo bottles isn’t necessarily the same juice that was in the plata and simply tossed in a barrel for a while.

The tequila is versatile, tasty as a sipper and a bit-more-complex component in traditional tequila cocktails. On the nose, it’s aromatic and rich, and on the palate it’s relatively easy-drinking without being bland: agave-forward, with notes of spice, tropical fruit, and oak. What you find particularly intriguing is comparing this tequila with some of the recent labels that have been released: The new product seems to have a heavy-handed emphasis on sweetness and notes of banana and honey (whether this happens naturally or via additives is a topic for another time). Gran Centenario manages to find a balance between some of the brasher old-school tequilas and the modern “soda pop” styles. Here, agave is front-and-center at all times, but the relatively lengthy aging time for the reposado—along with the other elements of harvest, distillation, barreling, and blending—result in a complex spirit with a hint of sweetness and an agave-fruit character.