Esperanto Tequila Reposado

I picked up a bottle of Esperanto Reposado the last time I was in Mexico. The great looking bottle caught my attention and I had never seen it in the states before that either. I hope that the contents are half as good as the bottle itself.

Aroma: A light cooked agave with a lot of vanilla and butterscotch. A really light hint of clove and cinnamon as well.
Initial Taste: A very light initial taste with faint notes of agave and vanilla. Not a whole lot there.
Body: A pretty thin bodied reposado...almost a bit watery. Slight flavors of oak, vanilla and spice compliment an agave presence that is a bit lacking.
Finish: Strangely enough, the finish is pretty decent. A nice linger of pleasant vanilla/butterscotch flavors, oak and hints of spice. Good, but not great.

Overall, this is a pretty average tequila in a spectacular bottle. It's not bad, but it certainly does not merit a $50+ price. I would say that having a bottle of any expression on your bar is not a bad idea because of the beautiful workmanship, but if you are looking for something strictly for the contents, you can really do better than this for $50+.

A very kind customer recently invited us to open his bottle and sample it. I had little intention of opening mine, preferring instead to display the superb bottle. In a Reidel glass it presented as follows:

Colour is a very pale gold. Nose is quite inviting, with mild agave, olive, herbals and wood. A slightly sharp attack with an initial very brief flash of sweetness quickly turns bitter. Bitterness and alcohol dominate a thin body which offers little agave. Finishes moderately with persistent bitterness and alcohol burn.
Clearly, the magnificent bottle is the strong point of this reposado and the only reason I have it in my collection. The $65 bottle price is simply not supported by the contents - it is "eye-candy" plain and simple... a below-average reposado in a stunning package.