Blanco
Unaged tequila or mezcal, bottled immediately or within sixty days of distillation. The truest expression of agave-and-still character before oak enters the conversation.
Blanco ("white") is the unaged tier of tequila and mezcal. The spirit is bottled directly from distillation, or after a short rest in stainless steel or neutral glass of no more than sixty days, with no contact with oak. It is the form in which the agave, the fermentation, and the still are heard without a wood filter on top of them.
Under NOM-006-SCFI-2012A regulatory-standard NOM is a federal Mexican product norm. Unlike facility NOMs (4-digit identifiers of specific distilleries), a standard NOM defines the rules for an entire category of product: which raw materials are permitted, where the product may be made, how it must be processed, and how the bottle must be labeled. Standard NOMs are written as "NOM-XXX-SCFI-YYYY" where XXX is the standard number and YYYY is the year. NOM-006-SCFI-2012 (Tequila). The official Mexican standard governing every aspect of Tequila production: which agave species may be used (only Agave tequilana Weber var. azul), which states and municipalities qualify, how the spirit must be distilled, what additives are permitted (up to 1% by volume even in '100% agave' bottles), and how the bottle must be labeled. Enforced by the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT). a tequila blanco may be bottled at distillation strength or diluted with demineralized water to bottling strength (a legal minimum of 35 percent ABV, though most reputable bottlings hold at 38 to 40 percent). Under NOM-070-SCFI-2016A regulatory-standard NOM is a federal Mexican product norm. Unlike facility NOMs (4-digit identifiers of specific distilleries), a standard NOM defines the rules for an entire category of product: which raw materials are permitted, where the product may be made, how it must be processed, and how the bottle must be labeled. Standard NOMs are written as "NOM-XXX-SCFI-YYYY" where XXX is the standard number and YYYY is the year. NOM-070-SCFI-2016 (Mezcal). The official Mexican standard for mezcal production. Defines three production tiers (Mezcal Industrial, Mezcal Artesanal, Mezcal Ancestral) with specific equipment and method requirements for each, lists the permitted agave species and states, and governs labeling. Enforced by the Consejo Regulador del Mezcal (CRM). the mezcal equivalent is unaged mezcal, often labeled blanco or joven; mezcal is more commonly bottled at distillation strength (45 to 52 percent ABV), which preserves the integrity of the cut.
A serious blanco is the diagnostic bottling for a producer. There is nothing for oak to forgive: cooking choices, fermentation health, still geometry, and cut discipline are all on the glass. The distillation chapter walks the chemistry that a blanco preserves and that aging begins to overwrite. The regulation chapter covers the full NOM-006-SCFI-2012A regulatory-standard NOM is a federal Mexican product norm. Unlike facility NOMs (4-digit identifiers of specific distilleries), a standard NOM defines the rules for an entire category of product: which raw materials are permitted, where the product may be made, how it must be processed, and how the bottle must be labeled. Standard NOMs are written as "NOM-XXX-SCFI-YYYY" where XXX is the standard number and YYYY is the year. NOM-006-SCFI-2012 (Tequila). The official Mexican standard governing every aspect of Tequila production: which agave species may be used (only Agave tequilana Weber var. azul), which states and municipalities qualify, how the spirit must be distilled, what additives are permitted (up to 1% by volume even in '100% agave' bottles), and how the bottle must be labeled. Enforced by the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT). aging tier ladder in which blanco sits at the base.