Master Distiller for Patron Francisco Alcarez

FRANCISCO ALCARAZ

Master Distiller for Patron Spirits

Francisco Alcaraz knows tequila and if you’re sipping tequila these days you have him to thank. The master distiller for the world’s first ultra-premium “small-batch” tequila samples several times a day for quality and is very involved in every step of production. But while the quality of Patron Tequila is Francisco’s main responsibility, he is responsible for much more within the global tequila category.

Francisco has been with Patron since he created its recipe over twenty years ago. Since then Patron has grown into one of the top selling ultra-premium tequilas in the world and despite its size, Francisco is determined to maintain small distillery ideals. “Even though Patron has grown considerably in many ways we’re still a small distillery,” says Francisco. “To manage our growth, instead of building bigger ovens, bigger fermenters, and bigger pot stills, what I’ve actually done is replicate our original small batch process so that essentially we have 12 distilleries under one roof. It is more expensive and time consuming to do it this way but it’s the only way to ensure a consistent, high-quality product.”

Patron bottles are made from recycled glass and are all hand-labeled and inspected. In total, about 60 hands touch and inspect each bottle of Patron. Even the ribbons around each bottle are tied and put into place by hand.

Apart from other tequila brands, Patron also hand selects their agave to ensure the best possible with the highest sugar content. “Truly what’s most important in making Patron is to start with the very best agave,” explains Francisco. “And for that we don’t own our own fields. Instead, we have long-term contracts with the best agave farmers in the Jalisco Highlands that allow us to hand select, one by one, only the agave that we deem good enough for Patron. It would be easier and more cost effective to own our own fields, but then we’d be beholden to that crop whether it was good or not.”

After the agave is delivered to the distillery, it’s cooked in small brick ovens for 79 hours. Then, two methods particularly unique to Patron are employed to crush the cooked agave: one a traditional Tahona mill and the other a roller mill process. Ultimately, the final process is to join two separate tequilas to create one. At that point Francisco ferments the mixture in wood tanks then distills it in small copper pot stills that he designed. “When people visit our distillery in Mexico and see exactly how we create Patron, they immediately realize that everything we do throughout the entire process is done with careful precision which can only be accomplished by hand. We still use the same small batch recipe and are still committed to the highest quality standards as the first day we started.” Very few distilleries still use the Tahona method and Francisco claims that even though it’s a very slow process it helps to create the best tequila and is an important part of Patron’s success.

Francisco also believes his patient temperament plays a role in Patron’s success. “To me if something isn’t exactly perfect, exactly right, then I start over. It takes a long time to create the perfect batch of tequila; it’s a process that requires a lot of attention, and a lot of patience.”

Along with its success, Francisco is very proud of Patron’s significance in opening the door for the entire spirits category. “People are increasingly starting to understand and realize that an ultrapremium 100% agave tequila like Patron is a very different spirit from the 51% “mixto” tequilas they might remember. Bartenders and mixologists play an important role in educating consumers about the differences between tequilas and it’s a message that I think is being heard. For me, I like Patron Silver, no ice, in a tequila glass. But there are so many ways to enjoy a good tequila either on its own or mixed in a cocktail. To see so many people around the world enjoying tequila, that is my greatest reward.”