Spirited Away

A shift is coming in the spirit world. One where gin, the sweetheart of the mid 2010s, could be relegated to second cult favourite. As drinkers turn to the agave spirit in all its premium forms, we investigate the hype behind Pistola—the country’s first aged agave spirit—to get a taste of the transition.

- SAUMYA A VOHRA

THE GIN REVOLUTION was a pivotal moment in alcohol history. From conjuring the immediate association of bridge-playing 70-something ladies at a country club, the juniper-led spirit became infinitesimally cool, siring one craft rendition after another. Whisky and rum always had their unswerving loyalists, but the curiosity of the experimental drinker was roused. In India, the revolution arguably began in 2016, with Greater Than, which made a home-grown craft gin accessible to the IMFL vodka–drinking public and soon made converts of them.

In 2020–21, the revolution took on another colour. While the gin market in India exploded to saturation point with a new distillation popping forth every few weeks, the discerning drinker began to prefer a different aqua vitae: the agave spirit. Tequila, the unfair victim of a party-girl reputation, began to emerge in premium forms; enough for a legion of Hollywood magnates to invest in brands of their own. George Clooney’s Casamigos, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s Teremana, Nick Jonas’s Villa One, Rita Ora’s Próspero— the list of celebrity-owned tequila and mezcal outfits is long and evergrowing. And then, there is the far less mainstream imprint of agave, one that is on the precipice of the big time; the agave spirit.