In July, drinks giant Diageo was hit with a lawsuit claiming that two of its tequila brands, Don Julio and Casamigos, are not actually made from 100 percent agave, and instead have “significant concentrations of cane or other types of alcohol rather than pure tequila” based on lab tests the plaintiffs comissioned. And just a few days ago, Michael Jordan‘s Cincoro Tequila was hit with a similar claim, alleging that this is yet another tequila that is falsely labeled as being made from 100 percent agave, something the brand denies.
Cincoro was founded in 2019 by Jordan along with NBA team owners Jeanie Buss and Wes Edens, among a few others, and it’s also backed by other star athletes like Serena Williams and Derek Jeter. The tequila is priced pretty high, starting at $90 for the blanco and ranging all the way up to $1,700 for the extra añejo expression. Even so, it’s generally considered to be on the sweeter end of the flavor spectrum by tequila enthusiasts, and while the brand does not specifically address the practice, many speculate that additives are used to augment the flavor leading to that sweetness (it’s up to you to decide if that’s a deal breaker or not).
Cincoro is labeled as being 100 percent agave, however, which the lawsuit disputes. Up to 1 percent of additives can be used, if indeed they are, without disclosing the practice and still be labeled as such. But according to the CRT, the Mexican governmental body that regulates tequila, the spirit must be “a product whose fermentation may not be enhanced with sugars other than those obtained from the Tequilana Weber Blue variety agave.” That is different from a mixto, which can contain up to 49 percent of other sugars, which typically come from corn.
According to a recent article at The Spirits Business, the class action lawsuit was filed by Florida resident Nabil Haschemie against Cinco Spirits Group (Cincoro’s parent group) on August 27 in the U.S. District Court, South District of California. According to Haschemie, a lab test revealed that the tequila contains ethanol that was not derived from Blue Weber agave, and instead from plants like corn and sugarcane. The lawsuit also cites Remberto Galván Cabrera, a spokesperson for the Mexican Agave Council, who said tequila companies started mixing cane alcohol into tequila sold as 100 percent agave when agave prices were high, and claims the practice continues to this day.
We reached out to a rep for Cincoro, and received the following statement in response: “Cincoro stands firmly behind the integrity of the brand and plans to vigorously defend it in court.” That’s pretty succinct and interestingly it leaves out the wording about being made from 100 percent agave as reported by The Spirits Business, but it stands as a denial of the alleged mislabeling. We will continue to update you on the situation as it plays out, and report on any further lawsuits against other tequila brands as this legal snowball continues to roll.
Authors
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Jonah Flicker