Casa Noble Tequila Crystal

Casa Noble Silver ? NOM 1137 ? Tasted 2/22/07. The tequila is a clear color and has an intense earth and floral aromas. Once you get past the intensity of the nose, you can smell moderate notes of spice, smoke, and pepper. On the tip of the tongue the tequila is mellow and soft and feels thin in the mouth. While the tequila has a hint of bitterness, it is actually fairly sweet. Now onto flavor. The flavor has intense agave and earth. There is also moderate spice, smoke, and floral attributes which are followed by mild fruit. The tequilas finish is a medium duration of flavor followed by a numbing alcohol feeling. Overall, I rated this tequila at the ?A/A+? level and would definitely recommend that everyone try this masterpiece.

When I think Casa Noble Crystal, I think agave, agave, agave. It has a strong initial agave and pepper flavor that continues to the back. It finishes with yet more agave, alcohol, and a slight bite - but nothing to be afraid of.

I am not a big sipper of blancos; I guess I prefer the subtle complexities and smoothness of anejos. But Casa Noble blanco is a great example of pure, unaged tequila; and a good way to retune the senses for agave.

As I noted in my review of the CN reposado, CN was very scarce and very expensive around here until recently. Actually, this blanco I got about a year ago, when my local liquor store seemed to get in about a case. I think I paid $29 a bottle. Probably mismarked or something for that time. An interesting thing happened re me re this blanco. I had really looked forward, based on on-line discussions, for years to getting some CN, really aiming for the reposado. When I first was drinking this, though, I was a maybe little disappointed. It seemed perhaps too smooth. Not as bad that way as Patron, but toward that. It is tripled distilled. I was thinking that maybe double distilled would have worked better. Good body and excellent finish though, and all the flavors that are there--and I would say that it has all of the complex agave flavors I so love--are good, balances, and complex. It just seemed to me that, say, a Don Julio or El Tesoro de Don Phillipe blanco had just about as good a nose, flavor, and finish, with good body, but with more intensity that the CN. Maybe others that have given lukewarm reviews have had similar initial experiences to me. However, since I have managed to get and have been drinking the CN reposado, it seems to somehow bring out aspects of the CN blanco that were not as apparent to me in the past. Now the CN blanco seems deeper and more nuanced to me, to have more "going on" in it that I have previously thought. It seems to have a purer agave flavor (pepper, citrus, spices, licorice (not sure re licorice) and "sweetness" (I think the sweetness is really in the aroma, I doubt that the sugar content is any higher than any other tequila) than the other blancos I really like. Other blancos taste a little less balanced to me now, their finishes a little less polished and less lingering. A few more slight off notes and hotness (although I like some "burn" in any tequila and the CN could perhaps use a little more) in the others some how. In any event, I find myself coming back to this CN blanco more consistently than to any other tequila, even the CNR, which I truly love, too, and I own a bunch of different tequilas and have tasted lots and lots more over the years. I could go for a bit more intensity. Like I say, maybe just double distilled or maybe even a more refined, and thus even more expensive, agave selection. This may well be my favorite tequila of any kind at this point. I may be more sensitive to agave specific tastes at this point that I was a year ago, and this tequila seems to present as pure an agave flavor profile as I can imagine. That and a stunning, pure, lingering finish. I have said it before, I think the finish separates the merely wonderful from the great, and this blanco has as good a finish as I have ever experienced in a tequila.

Tasted in a caballito on February 5, 2008 showing lasting legs on the glass.

Casa Noble Crystal

Color: clear
Aroma: strong alcohol
Taste: pure agave with a creamy body, a finish with a pepper burn.

A wonderful sipping blanco that is too good to cover up in a cocktail. The taste from beginning to end is smooth and easy to drink.

I'm definitely new to premium tequila's having been turned off to Tequila in college by mid to low grade options since my budget was not exactly complimentary to quality options.

A friend of mine introduced me to premium tequila via Patron Anejo. It was surprisingly different than anything I had before, being only a fan of Sauza Commerativo Anejo. I decided it was time I start looking into premiums a bit more with a better budget and appreciation for finer spirits developed through premium bourbon, scotch and rum exploration. I've learned you usually get what you pay for if you pay attention and search around.

I read a lot of reviews here and figured this was one of the tequila's I must try. Another was Herradura Repasado. So, my frame of reference is Patron Anejo, Patron Silver, Jose Cuervo 1800, Sauza in general but mostly Commerativo and of course recently Herradura Repasado.

I was hesitant at first to try a Blanco just based on my appeal to aged spirits and the general consensus that while Blancos have more Agave power to them, they also are rougher around the edges, something I'd expect from a mid-grade vodka. I was unsure, but I figure, if it had such great reviews, it was at least worth a try. I picked up a bottle for $38.00 at my local liquor store.

My first opening of the bottle was a surprise. I typically do not like the initial nose of any tequilas I've tried to date. The smell here, however, was something I'd expect from a very refined spirit. Nothing rough at all, rather sweet and soft. No real alcohol hit, but more a smooth unique smell with hints of caramel.

I poured about 1.5oz into a 4oz margarita style glass and swirled it. It coated the sides well showing it had smooth body. I sniffed again and was pleasantly surprised by the sweet aroma and absence of any strong alcohol or rough edge smells.

The initial taste was incredible. I expected, again, something rough, some burn, but there was none. It was sweet and smooth and the agave was amazingly present with some sweet tones. As I sipped more I picked up some spice but maintained the agave character. It continued to be smooth. A second pour and sipping continued to support the sweet agave flavor and build a bit of the spice. The heat only built slightly as I continued to enjoy the glass, but never reached a point of anything I had tried in the past. There was no real bitter or rough feel I get from many other spirits.

During my tasting I also enjoyed a maduro style cigar. The two complimented each other well. The both accentuated the sweetness of each other while keeping the spice nice and mellow in the background to add character.

I must say, though I am new and will likely try more premium tequilas along the way, this is a serious keeper. I am very pleased with my decision to go with the ratings here and give it a try. Even down to the quality decanter and feel. It felt very much worth the price to me and definitely helped create a wonderful mood on my back porch on a nice fall evening.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone curious about blancos but hesitant like me to drink any neat beyond mixing. I would also say it would be a tragedy to mix this. It is amazing all on its own!

ENJOY!