Make Mine Neat: 150 Ways to Enjoy Tequila at Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita

If there’s a perfect pairing to a vacation in the sun, it’s a frosty Margarita, the perennially popular salt-rimmed cocktail that lusciously combines orange liqueur and freshly squeezed lime juice with Mexico’s beloved national beverage, tequila.

Whether shaken in a cocktail, shot down with lime and salt in the popular fashion or sipped neat as the locals do, the fiery taste of tequila is synonymous with Mexican culture. Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita tempts the taste buds with more than 150 different bottles available at its bars and restaurants, including the coveted Cuervo 250 Aniversario and luxurious Clase Azul Ultra.  Complimentary tequila tastings and classes help guide guests refine their palates for this intriguing drink in all its forms, whether you favour a blanco (or silver), reposado (rested) and añejo (aged).

First produced commercially in colonial times, the secrets of the native blue agave plant were well known to the Aztecs long before the Spanish arrived in the 16th century.  The red volcanic soil in Mexico’s Jalisco state - Four Seasons is situated on its coastal edge – is ideal for growing the Agave tequilana, whose juice is fermented to create both tequila and its cousin mezcal.  Today, the most famous distilleries are still producing the world’s best tequilas in the region around Guadalajara, just 45 minutes by air from Puerto Vallarta.

For the true aficionado, the opportunity to experience tequila where it was born and continues to thrive is the Ultmate Tequila Tour, exclusively offered to Four Seasons guests.  A private helicopter whisks guests to the legendary Jose Cuervo distillery in the town of Tequila, situated in a beautiful UNESCO World Heritage Site. There, an expert sommelier takes guests behind the scenes to see first hand how tequila is produced from plant to bottle.  A gourmet lunch prepared by the Four Seasons culinary team is accompanied by fine tequilas and live local music.  Before it’s time to go, one last visit to the reserve vault – the cava – finishes a perfect day with a digestif of aged tequila served straight from the barrel.

Back at the Resort, tequila lovers will find that this “gift of the gods” is so much a part of local culture that it even turns up in treatments at the Apuane Spa.  The Punta Mita Mani and Pedi are fun favourites featuring a Margarita softening scrub, and for the serious spa goer, the signature Punta Mita Tequila Stone Ritual using tequila, indigenous sage oil and traditional Huichol healing techniques.  

New: Take Home Your Own Personal Taste of Mexico

Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita presents a new two-hour workshop that immerses guests in the taste and aromas of tequila. After learning how to identify, analyse and understand aromas and taste of different tequilas, guests have an opportunity to choose their favourites from four different barrels to create a one-of-a-kind spirit.  Each custom blend is bottled, waxed, signed and numbered and registered at the factory’s logbook.

"The best tequila is the one you blend" is presented to the guest as a truly unique souvenir of their stay. Custom tequila blends can also be prepared and private labeled for groups, meetings, weddings and special events.