Meet the Masters Behind 1800 Tequila’s The Taste Collective
Four experts. One mission: to redefine how bartenders think about flavor.
1800 Tequila’s The Taste Collective is the industry’s most dynamic tequila education platform yet—and it starts with the masters shaping it.
Taste goes far beyond sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. For bartenders, it’s the foundation of everything, yet most are never taught how it really works.
Flavor is personal—but it’s also part science, culture, and a whole lot of memories. That’s exactly what The Taste Collective is about. It’s a fresh education program led by four legendary experts in hospitality. This isn’t your typical tour or training—it’s a real conversation with people who live and breathe taste in every way.
Check out The Taste Collective experts:
Dr. Arielle Johnson — The Scientist
A flavor scientist, educator, and James Beard–nominated author of Flavorama, Dr. Johnson brings a deep, thoughtful approach to bartending. She led the development of the platform’s cornerstone: the Taste Analysis—a tool that helps bartenders decode how they experience flavor and use that insight to craft better cocktails. Her work takes taste from a gut feeling to something measurable, repeatable, and endlessly creative.
Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez — The Storyteller
One of the most celebrated bartenders in the country, Nacho Jimenez is the co-owner of NYC’s Superbueno—ranked #2 on North America’s 50 Best Bars 2025. As the Collective’s bartender expert, he leads with heart, guiding bartenders through emotional connections, cultural storytelling, and what it really means to create drinks that go beyond the glass. His master classes center on community, identity, and the power of true hospitality.
Ana Castro — The Culinary Bridge
Ana Castro, chef and co-owner of Acamaya in New Orleans, brings a chef’s perspective to the program. Named one of Food & Wine’s Best New Chefs and featured in The New York Times, she teaches bartenders to think about cocktails the way chefs think about dishes: as seasonal, sensory experiences shaped by memory, culture, and respect for ingredients.
Jaime Salas — The Advocate of Agave
As Head of Legacy & Advocacy for Proximo Spirits, Jaime Salas serves as the Collective’s cultural influence. A longtime educator and agave expert, he makes sure every part of the platform honors the spirit’s origin, terroir, and traditions. With more than two decades of experience, Salas has helped bartenders and consumers alike understand agave from the ground up… literally.
Together, these four visionaries are leading in-person Taste Collective workshops in major cities including Chicago, New York, Dallas, and Miami, where bartenders dive into personal palate exploration. With backgrounds that span the lab, the kitchen, the bar, and the agave fields, they offer a full-circle view of what it really means to understand taste in today’s cocktail world.
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