Clase Azul

Clase Azul was founded in Guadalajara in 1997 by Arturo Lomelí, then a young bar owner. Its tequila is made at a single distillery in Jalisco, from Blue Weber agave grown in the red earth of Los Altos de Jalisco. The piñas are cooked slowly in masonry ovens, fermented with a yeast blend the house has patented, and double-distilled in copper.

The decanter is as much the point as the liquid. Every one is hand-painted by an artisan, which the company has held to as it has grown, and the ceramics are made at its own workshop in the mountain town of Santa María Canchesdá, drawing on the techniques of the Mazahua community. It built that workshop, Tradición Mazahua; most of the artisans there are women, and it provides childcare, schooling, meals and transport alongside the work.

That combination — a serious tequila inside a piece of Mexican folk art — is what the brand is. Its Día de Muertos limited editions, each decanter decorated for the festival it marks, are the collectable end of the range.