Tequila Woman
Vinos y Licores Azteca has a team composed entirely of women, with tequila production dedicated 100% to export. Its factory is located in a small town in Jalisco without large industry, so the female profile of the company came naturally. “The sky is the limit,” says CEO Melly Barajas to her team to encourage them to dream big and follow their vision.
The businesswoman's family does not belong to the tequila trade. The brand was conceived when her father heard the news of the Tequila Denomination of Origin. Her father enthusiastically told Melly, “How I would love to have a tequila with our name on it!” It was then that she began researching how to produce the distillate and discovered that during the fermentation process an infinite number of flavors can be created. Eventually Melly chose a more commercial name for the brand, but the initial inspiration from her father remains.
Vinos y Licores Azteca has the Leyenda de México and Espectacular brands. Its added value is that these are artisanal tequilas, without any chemicals. The tequila goes through an oxygenation process, which is done with female hands. Its CEO states: “There is something special about women's energy.”
98% of Vinos y Licores Azteca's production goes to the United States, its main market. Melly’s goal is to reach Mexican consumers in the U.S., who have a certain yearning for their hometowns. She states that, “To take tequila to other countries is to take a bit of Mexico (…), so that drink has to be of excellent quality.” She adds: “People who do not know Jalisco, have not known Mexico.” The story of Ana Rosa Carrillo results from her initial participation in La Playa, a family business dedicated to the distribution of wine and liquor, founded by her father in 1947. In 2000, she decided to found her own company: Tequilera de la Barranca de Amatitán.
After acquiring her first apprenticeship in a trading company, Ana Rosa Carrillo started the process of learning all about tequila production. She researched the optimal procedure to obtain the product she needed. The first brand was Tequila Mi Tierra. On the bottle she placed the signature of her father, who died in 1991. Her mother inaugurated the plant in memory of the family business where it all began.
The factory location is at the bottom of the Amatitán ravine and has two springs that provide the water used in the production process. Since the valley in the municipality of Tequila has volcanic soil, Ana Rosa tells how the water passes through the natural filters created by the rocks, until it reaches the factory to give the tequila a different flavor. The site is surrounded by mango, lemon, pumpkin, etc., which provide natural yeasts for the fermentation of the tequila, that results in a more herbal flavor.
The production is an artisanal process. Currently, the company sends most of its production to the domestic market and has diversified its offering with a chocolate creamer and a coffee creamer with tequila.
Tequilera de la Barranca de Amatitán has manufacturing and export projects for 2022, with expectations to grow in the United States. In 2020, the company reestablished relations with Japan and Canada to reconquer its old markets.
For its part, distinguished for being one of the five oldest distilleries in the country, Casa San Matías tequila has a solid history. Each of its four directors has contributed to reach its current position: Don Delfino González founded the company in 1886; Don Guillermo Castañeda consolidated the work team; Don Jesús López Román contributed the company’s first brand that uses 100% pure agave; and Carmen Villarreal already has several achievements in her current position.
Villarreal’s first achievement, in addition to being the first woman at the head of the company, is the internationalization of the brand. Currently, Casa San Matías exports 60% of its production to the United States, Australia, Germany, Italy, England, France and Japan, and is preparing to enter Denmark, Greece, Taiwan, and the rest of China. The other 40% is destined for the domestic market. In 2020, a complex year due to the pandemic, Casa San Matías achieved first place regionally and first place nationally in the awards for the best companies to work for. It also has a certificate for its commitment to social responsibility and is the only tequila company with certification in gender equity.