What Tequilas Are Bartenders Actually Drinking? We Asked Them

Celebrity tequila gets plenty of attention. Ask working bartenders what they’re actually excited to drink, though, and the conversation gets considerably more interesting.

Chilled recently posed a few tequila questions to members of the Chilled Ambassadors Network, our community of working bartenders and beverage professionals.

We wanted to know which smaller and craft-minded tequila brands were earning their attention and, for a little fun, which celebrity-backed bottles had genuinely surprised them.

Not surprisingly, bartenders appear to be paying close attention to what’s happening inside the bottle.

When Ambassadors started naming their favorites, brands including La Gritona, G4, ArteNOM, Fortaleza, Volans, Cascahuín, Cambio, and relative newcomer Zumbador entered the conversation.

Rather than simply naming bottles, however, respondents talked about how those tequilas were made.

One bartender praised La Gritona, G4, ArteNOM, Fortaleza, and Volans while specifically pointing to their production and transparency.

Another singled out Cambio and immediately dove into fermentation and barrel treatment, noting its use of wine yeast and Chardonnay barrels.

That level of detail says something about where tequila culture is headed behind the bar. Here are more of the results we discovered.

Bartenders Are Looking Beyond the Label

Tequila has experienced an extraordinary transformation in the United States. What was once primarily associated with shots and Margaritas has developed into a premium spirits category where drinkers increasingly discuss agave provenance, fermentation, distillation methods, barrel treatment, and production transparency.

Bartenders are helping drive that education.

It’s one reason brands such as Fortaleza, G4 and La Gritona have developed such passionate followings among spirits professionals. The appeal isn’t necessarily flashy packaging or a celebrity name. It’s often the opportunity to taste the decisions made during production.

Sometimes, Breaking Tradition Is Interesting Too

Perhaps the most revealing response in the Chilled conversation came from a bartender who nominated Cambio.

Rather than praising the tequila simply for tasting good, he immediately explained why he found it interesting: wine yeast, wood fermentation and wine barrels.

And it points toward an important distinction in the way bartenders talk about “craft.” Traditional doesn’t necessarily mean good, just as unconventional doesn’t necessarily mean bad. What appears to intrigue these bartenders is intentionality — producers making deliberate choices that result in something distinctive in the glass.

Other Ambassadors mentioned G4 and Cascahuín, while newer names such as Zumbador also entered the discussion. One bartender enthusiastically recommended Zumbador’s high-proof Blanco after recently encountering the brand, another indication that bartenders are still actively hunting for bottles beyond the familiar back-bar staples.

But Celebrity Tequila Isn’t Automatically the Enemy

Then we asked a different question: Are there any celebrity tequila brands that surprised you by actually being good?

This is where things got interesting.

Código 1530 ran away with the informal poll, receiving the most votes.

Código 1530 counts country star George Strait among its founders, but the tequila’s story extends beyond its celebrity association. The brand says its tequila is produced in Amatitán, Jalisco, and traces its production to a local distilling tradition that predates the modern brand. Its aged expressions use French white oak wine barrels, while its Rosa rests for a month in uncharred Cabernet barrels.

The lesson, then, isn’t that bartenders reject celebrity tequila. It’s that celebrity alone isn’t enough to impress them.

The Back Bar Is Becoming More Informed

For years, tequila marketing was largely about lifestyle: Mexico, sunshine, nightlife, Margaritas, luxury bottles and, eventually, famous founders.

That isn’t disappearing. But behind the bar, another conversation is taking place.

Bartenders increasingly want to know where the agave came from. They want to understand how it was cooked, fermented and distilled. They’re interested in barrels, proof and production decisions. And they want to know who is actually making the liquid.

The broader tequila industry has noticed the shift toward transparency as well. Patrón recently made ingredient transparency a centerpiece of its marketing, citing consumer research showing strong interest in greater openness from producers.

And perhaps that’s the most encouraging takeaway from our Ambassadors’ responses: in an increasingly crowded tequila category, bartenders are still curious. They’re still discovering producers. They’re still debating bottles. And they’re paying attention to the decisions that happen long before a tequila reaches the back bar.

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