In the spirits world, the blue agave plant has always been synonymous with tequila. But now, thanks to a relentless entrepreneur with some notable connections in Mexico, agave is being distilled into vodka in Portland.
Jackie Proteau has worked in the real estate business for nearly 30 years, and her love of spirits and wine (she and husband Dwight have an importing business – Two Worlds – importing and distributing Italian wine) spans just as long. Proteau longed for a new challenge, particularly after the real estate market in the Northwest took a nosedive a decade ago, just as craft distilling business around the Pacific Northwest was beginning to take off. She first looked to Italy, and spent a month working in a grapparia, learning the technique for distilling the Italian digestivo. It was a family connection in Mexico however, that got her thinking about agave.
Jackie decided that if she going to dive into the challenge of making something other than tequila with agave, it needed to be interesting and something she could be proud of. Why vodka? “We’d already been thinking about a product with broad appeal, and the craft industry was already doing interesting things with vodka made with various grains, potatoes and even apples,” Proteau explains. “So we asked ourselves, ‘What can we do that is interesting, unique and thought provoking? Why not agave vodka,’ we said. Of course it wasn’t that simple!”
The Proteaus first investigated bringing the agave ‘piñas’ into the U.S., but they were too big, and also caused problems with the FDA. They then looked at importing agave syrup. “After some analysis however,” Jackie explained, “We discovered it was too processed, and that true expression of the agave was lost.” Ultimately, Jackie and Dwight decided to harvest the agave and bake the piñas in Mexico, then double distill the product there first, before bringing a high-proof distillate to a partner in Portland to distill the final product. They contracted with Tom Burkleaux at New Deal Distillery in Portland, who understood their vision for the product and also employed a Carl still from Germany, which Jackie had set her sights on years earlier when she was researching building out her own distillery.
The resulting vodka produced by RedTerra is smooth – as you’d expect from vodka – but with just enough heat to remind you of its agave origins. “I think what the craft industry has done for many products, and especially vodka,” Jackie offered, “Is give license to move away from that neutral flavor to something more complex.”
Jeff Steiner, the front of house manager at Bramling Cross in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, enjoys the RedTerra vodka and stocks it at the restaurant’s bar. “It’s very smooth, like a premium product such as Ketel One or Grey Goose, but has that smell and sweetness of agave,” he explained. Steiner has used the vodka in a martini with a mezcal rinse, for a twist on the classic martini, but with a smoky play between the two agave products, or by serving it on the rocks with an orange twist. The most popular however, has been a beer cocktail served during the restaurant’s brunch. He combines a light, lager style beer with orange juice, a little muddled chile pepper and the vodka all served on ice.
