Editor’s Note: Sean Ryan is the founder of Simply Agave™ and Lethal™ Mezcal, both of which emerge from Mexico’s agave fields. In this interview he explains the origins of these brands and how they’re interconnected.
Q: What got you interested in products related to agave plants in the first place?
A: I met three gentlemen at an investors’ conference in Silicon Valley over a dozen years ago, all of whom worked as business facilitators for different Mexican states. Because of my beverage industry background they wanted me to meet Carmen Villareal, owner of Casa San Matías, a tequila company in Jalisco. They admired Carmen’s passion and commitment to building the Mexican economy by working with like-minded people in the U.S.
Q: What did you learn from her?
A: Carmen shared her vast knowledge of the tequila business and she helped me to be able to distinguish one brand from another with just one sip. The margaritas made in the U.S. are usually made with a mix of tequila combined with a very tart or sweet mixer. The most common mixers mask the taste of the tequila, so most American consumers weren’t interested in using a better tequila. I asked her if there was another way to make a margarita, and she said yes, with agave nectar and lime juice. This creates a great margarita that allows you to taste the tequila.
Q: How did that meeting lead to the creation of Simply Agave™?
A: I realized that if there was a high quality agave nectar that restaurants could mix with a great tequila they could create much better margaritas. This would improve the sales of the quality tequila I was experiencing in Mexico. So I learned how quality agave nectar can be produced and created the processes we use today. With tequila you use hot water to extract the sugar, and if fermentation begins, that’s OK. But we don’t want fermentation with agave nectar, so we control the temperature of the water closely. We start with cold water to get the easy sugar, then lukewarm to get the rest. Then we take that liquid sugar and move it through triple filtration. That’s unique to our process. We do it because the mixologists told us they wanted an agave nectar without its own taste profile, so that it can better complement the tequila. Triple filtering lets us create a consistent, lightly sweet agave with no plant taste. Then we evaporate the excess water so we can deliver a smooth nectar that’s the right consistency to create a great margarita every time.
Q: How do bartenders use Simply Agave™ to create better margaritas?
A: When you’re making a margarita with our nectar, you can adjust the water to get the flavor profile you want. So now restaurants can make a sweet margarita, a less sweet margarita, or even a “skinny” margarita by adding more water. All of them showcase the taste of the tequila.
Q: So how did the market react when you introduced Simply Agave™?
A: I showed up in the States with the same liquor distributors the tequila companies used, and explained the goal: To help restaurants make quality margaritas that highlight the taste of great tequila. It quickly became very popular, especially when the skinny margarita became popular. A skinny margarita made with Simply Agave™, fresh lime juice and a quality tequila has less calories but still tastes great.
Q: How did your work with Simply Agave™ lead to the introduction of Lethal™ Mezcal?
A: We purposely spent a lot of time working with restaurants and discussing margaritas. We discovered that most bartenders had started to work with mezcal several years ago. So we started experimenting with mezcal, too. We recognized that mezcal had a much bigger flavor profile. A decade ago people didn’t want an aftertaste with their tequila. With mezcal, it’s the reverse. You get a smokey profile, a long tail, with a lot more flavor. And those accents are enhanced when you make a mezcal margarita with Simply Agave™.
During one of our regular field checks in Oaxaca at our agave growers, and we ended up exploring a gentleman’s agave fields that were three hours outside the city, high in the mountains. His name is Juan Nacho, and his agave plants were huge, fed by spring water with minimal mineral content. And, they have great sugar content. In the middle of his fields he had a mezcal distillery. I tasted it and it was very different from the others I’d tried. We had a great conversation about the history of his family, their secret distilling practices and he told me he could create a custom blend.
I knew at that moment I could now create a great mezcal with a “killer” taste—so Lethal™ Mezcal was launched.
Q: Why is this mezcal different from others?
A: First, we are not pulling the agave from the valley floor like the little mom-and-pop distilleries along the side of the highway outside of town that some of the mezcal companies buy and then mix. Unlike tequila, with mezcal the yeast fermentation comes from the air it is exposed to during the process. It’s not added in. And the yeast in the air high up in the mountains is different from that on the valley floor. It creates a slightly sweeter profile.
Second, our Lethal™ Mezcal is artisanally crafted in small batches using an age-old recipe handed down from one generation to next. We’ve created a 90 proof, medium smoke taste profile that’s not overwhelming. We want our customers to have a great experience with a margarita made with Lethal™. That was our inspiration. But it’s also good straight up, especially with an orange wedge instead of a lime. That’s the traditional way to do it, and because of the smoke and the more complex flavor profile, an orange wedge is better than the tart bite of a lime.
Q: How did you come up with the name?
A: I wanted a name that would be memorable and would reflect the “killer” taste of our mezcal. Lethal™ Mezcal meets that criteria.
Having a marketing background I understand the needs of our restaurant and bar customers.
Helping them to market signature drinks made with superior products was a top priority so we have created a series of Lethal™ branded drinks to add to their menus including the Lethal Margarita™ which we are promoting across multiple social platforms.
Another example is the Lethal Mule™. Usually with a Moscow Mule the heat comes from the ginger, but with the Lethal™ version the smoke profile of mezcal really comes through that. Your taste buds respond to the heat. And then there is the Lethal Mary™. The smoke profile mixes so well with the tomato flavor. It’s fun!
Q: What’s next for your company?
A: First and foremost I am focused on helping my customers increase their sales by popularizing and creating a demand for the Lethal Margarita™ across the nation.
But..I am always looking for ways to launch something new in the beverage category…something different and that intrigues the next generation of cocktail connoisseurs!