Tequila Herradura
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| Subsidiary of Brown-Forman | |
| Industry | Manufacturing and Distillation of Tequila |
| Founded | (1870) |
| Founder | Félix López |
| Headquarters | Amatitán, Jalisco, Mexico |
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Key people
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Randy McCann (General Director) |
| Parent | Brown-Forman Corporation |
| Website | www |
Tequila Herradura (officially Grupo Industrial Herradura) is a tequila distiller located in Amatitán, Jalisco, Mexico. It was formally founded in 1870 by Félix López and the business remained in the family for over 125 years. Today it is owned by US beverage maker Brown-Forman, but the tequila is still made in the same place and facilities under a Mexican subsidiary. Tequila products sold under the Herradura name are 100% agave. The company makes other tequila products such as El Jimador, which is the best selling tequila in Mexico, as well as New Mix, a tequila and grapefruit soda beverage. Since its acquisition by Brown-Forman, Herradura has had a number of promotional efforts in Mexico and the United States, including inviting artists to use tequila barrels at the bases for art pieces, which are then displayed and auctioned off for charity.
The first known owner of the tequila producing property was Feliciano Romo in the early 19th century. The official history of Herradura begin with Félix López, who began as the distillery administrator under then owners Josefa Salazar and her sons. In 1870, López took over the distillery and agave fields and registered it as a tequila producer under the name of Hacienda San José del Refugio.
Félix López married Carmen Rosales and they had two children, Aurelio and María de Jesús. The couple modernized the production of tequila at the hacienda, building a facility that remained in use until 1963. López died in 1878 and Rosales took over the business along with her brother Ambrosio Rosales and his wife Elisa Gomez Cuervo. Later, the business was inherited by Aurelio López.
The construction of railroads in the late 19th century allowed for easier shipping to other parts of Mexico and increased tequila’s popularity in the country. By this time the hacienda’s tequila was well known, with Aurelio giving it the name of Herradura. The name, which means horseshoe in Spanish, is a said to have come from the finding of a horseshoe on the hacienda property. Stories vary but the one told by the company’s website says that it was found in the early 1900s by Aurelio, while inspecting the agave fields. It gleamed like gold and the horseshoe was kept for luck then naming the tequila after it. In the 1920s the Cristero War broke out, with both Aurelio and his sister María de Jesus as sympathizers. At one point government troops surrounded the hacienda but the siblings were able to escape. However, Aurelio never returned to the hacienda again.
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Wikipedia