There’s nothing more exciting on my spirits exploration journey than taking stock of palate evolution and development over time.
Código 1530 Blanco was one of the very first traditionally made tequilas that I tried very early on in my agave spirits journey. At the time, its earthiness, pepperiness, and anise bitter notes were very challenging to my unexperienced palate. However, I have progressed a lot over the past nearly two years and decided recently to revisit this after tasting through several new 50-ml mini bottles and deciding I do like its flavor profile.
The brand is named after “Los Códigos,” the traditional customs of the state of Jalisco and it uses the Jerusalem Cross from the state’s coat of arms. Most well known because country music legend George Strait, Código 1530 is made by a fifth generation family of tequila master distillers, the Perez Ocampo family, at their distillery, Varo Destileria (NOM 1616) located in the Valley region in Amatitán.
Código 1530 uses Valley-grown Blue Weber agaves that are fully mature and hand-selected and tested for their sugar (brix) levels – agaves with 32+ brix levels are used. The agave is cooked in a low-pressure autoclave, chopped and have the aguamiel extracted before being fermented using local bakery yeast for 12 days in stainless steel tanks. The blanco is 2x-distilled in stainless steel pot stills and bottled at 80 proof (40% ABV) using mineral-rich water from local freshwater pools in the Los Bajos region. The tequila is cold filtered and aerated before bottling.
A full review is forthcoming after more spaced out tasting notes-taking sessions, but here are some initial observations about Código 1530 blanco’s aromas and flavors from the new mini bottles and several pours from this first full-sized bottle:
*The aroma and flavor profiles are very earthy with prominent vegetal/herbal/grassy notes including mint and green bell pepper followed by a lot of sweet cooked and musky raw agave, a kick of black pepper, baking spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves), vanilla, floral notes, citrus (lemon and lime) peel, a lot of minerality and some salinity (from the minerals), and a nice light smokiness on the back palate on the finish. I appreciate Código 1530 blanco much, much more than I did at the start of my agave spirits journey and am a big fan now of the brand’s reposado and añejo.
This first full-sized bottle is from Lote (lot/batch) #LNV145BC040 (bottled 28 November 2024).
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