Tequila is the toast of the rich and famous

Future. Tequila is becoming a gold-mine for celebrities. While some merely slap their name on a bottle, others are becoming true connoisseurs. Though the level of actual celebrity involvement varies, booming revenues may prove that drinkers worldwide (especially in America) simply defer to recognizable names when ordering at the bar.

Name brand
After George Clooney sold Casamigos for $1 billion, celebrities have been flocking to Mexico to get their share of tequila treasure.

• Dwayne Johnson’s Teremana sold a record-breaking 300K cases in its first year.
• Kendall Jenner sold out of her 818 Tequila as soon as it dropped.
• Michael Jordan’s Cincoro is one of the most famous tequilas in the world.

Tequila distiller Casa Maestri (which makes Cincoro) revealed that it produces tequilas for over 150 brands, including names like Elon Musk, E-40, and Shay Mitchell.

Lucrative tequila deals are nothing new — celebrity tequila first hit it big when former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar sold his Cabo Wabo brand back in 2007 for $80 million.

On the rocks
While tequila drinking is popular worldwide, making tequila is very much a Mexican pastime — tequila can’t even be called tequila if it isn’t produced in one of five states in Mexico, including Jalisco (much in the way that scotch can only come from Scotland or chianti wine can only come from Tuscany).

Even though foreign investment has turned tequila-making into a $10.8 billion-a-year industry (with 72% of exports going to the U.S.), old school tequila makers remain wary of celebrities swooping in and slapping their name on a bottle without putting in the work.

Kendall Jenner met criticism earlier this year after misspelling Spanish words on early bottles and airing commercials considered by many to be “in poor taste.” On the other hand, Dwayne Johnson’s Teremana has been praised for honoring its roots — it has its own distillery and made the family that oversees its production co-owners of the brand.