In the past few years, “additive-free,” a term used to designate tequila that’s been produced without sweeteners and other artificial ingredients, has evolved into a buzzword. And it’s not just wellness crowds, celebrities, and big tequila brands that have clocked the trend— it’s Mexican federal authorities, too.
An ongoing conflict between Tequila Matchmaker’s Additive-Free Alliance initiative, which offers the only database of additive-free brands, and the Tequila Regulatory Council (CRT) — the group that certifies and regulates tequila—culminated in a raid last month of a Mexican property belonging to Tequila Matchmaker’s founders, Grover and Scarlet Sanschagrin. Authorities claimed that the facility was being used as “an adulterated tequila factory” and while no arrests were made, glass bottles, jars and packaging were seized. Local media outlets reported that the complaint had been filed by the CRT.
While the CRT has previously denounced independent labeling efforts, the timing of the raid is worth noting as it coincided with the conclusion of the comment period for changes to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s (TTB) next set of rules for alcohol labeling. It’s possible that Mexico’s largest tequila producers and the regulators that work with them were beginning to feel the heat from consumers and the industry demanding more transparency. But for now, the future of additive-free certification remains hazy.
What’s The Big Deal About Additives?
While a claim like “no additives” — especially given the small percentage allowed in tequila—might seem minor, those increasingly potent sugary syrups and artificial colors can shift consumers’ expectations of tequila away from the more complex flavors of a spirit made using centuries-old production methods.
The CRT permits 1% of a 100% agave product to consist of additives without any notice on the bottle’s label. Those include glycerin, caramel coloring, oak extract, and jarabe or sugar-based syrup.
While brands may use the term additive-free to appeal to the health-conscious consumer, many in the industry underscore that “going additive-free” is more of a gateway for drinkers to understand how quality tequila tastes and looks when additives aren’t used to mask flavors or create consistency.
“It’s about how I want my tequila to taste like the earth from which it comes from, to get a sense of place, to be able to identify the production method and how it’s being aged,” said Khrys Maxwell, director of Tequila & Agave Distillates at the Museum of Distilled Spirits and curator of agave spirits at San Diego’s La Puerta.
That was, in part, the inspiration behind Tequila Matchmaker’s additive-free program launched in 2020, which expanded upon the platform’s database started in 2009. The online resource allows tequila aficionados to rate their favorite bottles, get recommendations, and discover technical production information about distilleries. Adding a database of verified additive-free brands came at a time when the high-end tequila boom was in full swing, and when consumers began to want to learn more about what was in those expensive bottles. In the last 52 weeks ending March 30, sales of additive-free tequilas have jumped up 316.6% off-premise compared to the same period last year, according to NIQ data.
At San Diego’s Old Town Tequila, purchases of additive-free brands have echoed that uptick in the last few years, despite that more recently consumers don’t seem to understand what the term means, said owner Zack Romaya. Still, they might also be more inclined to try a new brand with additive-free claims, he added.
In pioneering an industry-first standard for additive-free, Tequila Matchmaker’s program has helped to combat claims that are otherwise difficult to prove by the average consumer in an industry that does not require ingredient, nutritional or allergen labeling (yet). Additive-free status has only been attained by about 100 brands out of the nearly 3,000 tequila brands on the market, and the founders have said before that 80% of the tequilas they test fail their certification to be 100% additive free.
Last year, the program rebranded as the Additive-Free Alliance and rolled out a stamp now seen on some bottles. The CRT has not only denounced Tequila Matchmaker’s initiatives, arguing that any certification “induces error or confusion to the Tequila consumer,” but announced it was creating its own “parameters for the use of the additive-free legend.” Until that program is formally launched, no tequila brands are allowed to use the terms additive-free.
Meanwhile, Patrón rolled out CRT-endorsed additive-free labeling in October, but no details have been provided on what that certification means or what’s next for an official CRT certification program. Tequila Matchmaker has also been silent on the future of its program since the raid. An update last week from the founders shared that they will be able to speak more about the incident soon, and will continue to run their app and website.
Transparency Conversation Heats Up
The future of spirits labeling in general is up in the air as well, as the movement towards providing more supply chain and ingredient information heats up across CPG and global spirits. Tequila labeling could also be in flux because of changes to the Mexican government’s own recent labeling overhaul that some in the industry worry could extend from food and soda into distilled spirits.
In the U.S., BevAlc suppliers are awaiting new rules after the TTB announced last November it would issue new proposed rules for labeling on wine, beer and spirits. In 58 out of 155 comments made in the last 90 days about the proposed rules, the terms “additive” and “tequila” show up with demands for more transparency coming from brand owners, retailers, consumers and counter arguments from a tequila lobbying group, the National Chamber of the Tequila Industry (CNIT). The comments may have set off alarm bells for larger producers.
“There are brands who are using additives and are probably feeling the heat from the conversation,” said Maxwell.
Mike Dolan, co-founder of additive-free Mijenta and ex-Bacardi CEO, is convinced that tequila is just the first spirit in a larger conversation that will soon extend broadly into the industry. Whiskey and other spirits also contain additives.
“I think we’re right at a moment now where we’re caught in this political back-and-forth about what you can say on the label, and you have big forces that are trying to avoid the issue,” he said. “And you have others that are really making a point about what goes into their product.”
Retailers Look Beyond Additive-Free
As for the hundreds of tequila brands vying for market space with an additive-free claim, the good and the bad news is that retailers are looking beyond that term. For spirits buyer Nima Ansari at New York City’s Astor Wine & Spirits, his considerations are centered around quality and pricing, and then “value relative to those things.”
“The entire ecosystem of the agave industry, literally from the agriculture for the plants, to the cultures behind them and the massive changes at every level from the huge rise in demand and the proliferation of new brands, means that everyone is coming at this category from different points of view and the determination of what has value is far from binary,” he said.
Like the education that went into explaining the differences between mixto and 100% agave tequilas, Ansari said additive-free designation is a new marker that denotes an intentionality from brands and a more premium positioning, both of which he thinks are attractive to premium agave drinkers.
“If ultimately this current movement raises more questions and curiosity at the consumer level and transparency from the producer level than it is a good thing,” he said.
But suppliers still need to distinguish themselves further—many of the new premium and above brands are coming from distilleries that already have multiple products on the market.
“Why am I going to support a new brand when basically it’s the same product coming out of the same distillery, when I can support the actual brand that’s owned by the distillery?” said Maxwell.
Back at Old Town, Romaya has also noticed that while additive-free tequila can generate interest in new brands or older brands on the market that are newly labeled as additive-free, drinkers are still exploring their tastes.
“Some of the brands that are not additive-free where I saw a dip, shoppers are now going back to them because they want those sweeter, caramel, butter, chocolate flavors, which sure, you can get in a traditional brand but if you want those notes in the forefront it’s a different experience,” he said.