I have always enjoyed making content about cocktails and spirits and have been doing so for years now, but I have always wanted to do something a bit more. After about one year of making content, I had the idea to make a TV show style cocktail competition, featuring some secret ingredients and bartenders at the top of their game.

What I was unsure of was whether anyone would be interested in it at all. So I put that idea away in the back of my mind for years until I felt like I could do it right and give it the proper attention that it needed. I also wanted to do something for the cocktail bartending community here in Massachusetts and Boston and give back to this community that I am a part of.

So I reached out to some incredible bartenders I knew. They came all the way to my bar in the suburbs, and we made the amazing video that you see above. I want to thank the following:

Oscar Simoza, who runs a few different bars in downtown Boston including, J.M Curley’s and the Wig Shop (plus a few more) ; Jesse Lane who works at Backbar in Somerville, ; and Marco Anaya, who has worked in a few incredible places including the legendary but now gone, Drink.

I know this probably won’t be for everyone but I am so incredibly proud of this video, and so proud of the work of my video editor Laney, and also my wife Sarah, who helped film this. It’s been over a month since we’ve recorded it and have been working around the clock to get this out.

And here it is! I couldn’t be prouder of how this came out. I hope to be able to do this again and I hope you all give it a watch and give me some feedback with how we can make it better the next time! I’d greatly appreciate it.

And if you did enjoy it, would you consider sharing the video?

Thank you so much.

Trends are a major component of the spirits and alcohol industry. In a way, they go hand-in-hand. If there is a trend that is marketable, producers will often find it—and more importantly—find a way to capitalize on that trend.

Obviously, promoting the merits of additive-free tequila is something that we have spoken about time and again, but what we are actually seeing is that the “movement” is slowly growing and is starting to take over as more and more people talk about it.

Take @johnrondi aka “JohnnyDrinks” for example. As far as creators go, this account is about as mainstream as it gets, usually geared towards educating non-experts about classic cocktails and entertainingly spewing basic bar knowledge. In a recent short, he demonstrates how he is supposedly able to determine whether there are flavor enhancers (additives) in tequila. Fittingly, he points out that the over-hyped Clase Azul is loaded with additives as a result from his test, and the other bottle he has (the “lesser known”) is additive-free. If you ask us, it’s surprisingly refreshing, considering this type of account—say a year or two ago—could have been easily singing the praises of a product like Clase Azul.

Heck, you even see Mark Wahlberg endorse a tequila—Flecha Azul (which is garbage if you ask us)—and go as far to say that it’s “not that other BS that claims to be additive-free.” He claims that this isn’t a celebrity tequila either, because he is merely an “investor” and not the creator of it. Marky Mark talking down on celebrity tequilas and promoting a product for being additive-free? Huh?

There are even stores such as Total Wine—a big box behemoth—that will label just about anything as Additive-Free in their stores since there is nothing stopping any brand from saying they are additive free.

Are you sensing a trend here?

While it is great that casual tequila drinkers are starting to get curious about additive-free and its merits, and it’s definitely making its way into the mainstream, does this create a potential conflict for what tequila purists are trying to accomplish?

One interesting way to look at is to view the trend in a similar way that we view the craft beer market and the way independent and micro-brews took the industry by storm in the early and mid 2000’s. Many forget that prior to there being breweries in every city and before the idea of “beer snobs,” the market was dominated by one-dimensional, giant-owned beer companies. Today the beer market is obviously vastly different, with considerably more diversity of product and the ability for producers to show off creativity, craftmanship, and individuality in what used to be a tough market to crack. If additive-free is able to achieve a similar market share that could be seen as a huge win.

So why the sudden hype? Did the public suddenly wake up and realize that celebrity tequilas suck? Do people actually taste a difference?

One possible explanation is the fact that consumers are increasingly interested in what they're putting in their bodies, driving the rise of "additive-free" products across various categories. This trend is fueled by a desire for healthier choices, with people wanting to avoid ingredients they perceive as unhealthy. It aligns with the popularity of organic and non-GMO products. Transparency is also a major factor. Consumers want to know exactly what's in their food and drinks, and they don't trust hidden ingredients or artificial additives. Some "additive-free" products position themselves as higher-quality and more authentic, targeting consumers willing to pay more for a perceived purer experience.

Additionally, millennials tend to be more health-conscious and interested in clean-label products, not to mention products that are made slowly and with more attention—which is another sign that this trend has staying power.

Overall, the "additive-free" trend is likely here to stay for a while, but the risk is that it may just be a buzzword that settles into a niche market alongside conventionally produced goods. Until there are some standards around what is and isn’t additive free, we won’t have a consensus on whether this movement has something to it or whether it’s just another marketing ploy.

It’s also worth noting that there are also challenges that could limit the long-term dominance of "additive-free" products. Producing them can be more expensive, potentially leading to higher prices that some consumers might not be willing to pay. After all, there is a reason why the celebrity and Name brands use additives in the first place—it’s cheap and effective!

So the question persists. As consumers become more conscious and seeking transparency, “additive-free” is starting to become the hot topic-is this just a fleeting trend, or a sign of a more discerning palate?

Our Take: While there is always a risk, with good coverage and people in the industry standing by it, we hope ‘Additive Free’ does not just become a buzzword but instead, as we spoke about on our panel last week at BCB, we hope Additive- Free becomes the new Bare Minimum Standard for any tequila brand—almost like how a few decades ago “100% Agave” became the standard that you now see on most bottles.

There is still a lot to do to see that, but it’s always great when so many creators talk about Additive-Free tequilas.