The Art of Design Issue 28 2017 | Page 189

189 Taking this challenge square on is UWA Tequila, Scotland’s first tequila company. Formed in September 2016, the tequila company is making waves in the industry by being the first in the world to create aged tequilas by solely ageing them in individual Speyside whisky casks. Individual and unique, the brand will launch its first batch of super premium craft tequilas in the UK in October. A 20-mile drive from their hometown of Aberdeen, Michael Ballantyne and Ross Davidson, co-founders of UWA Tequila, select the very best oak whisky casks used by a premium Scottish Speyside distillery to age their reposado and añejo tequila’s in. Once selected, the impressive casks are then exported to Tequila, Mexico where they are filled with 100% Blue Weber lowland agave tequila, which is left to age and rest. Its core range of products includes a platinum blanco, a seven-month aged reposado and a 14 month aged añejo. Michael Ballantyne, co-founder of UWA Tequila, said: “UWA Tequila is like nothing else on the market at the moment. We’re the first company to ever have aged tequila in Scotch whisky casks without blending the liquid with various other barrels - we’re extremely proud of that. “The tequila industry has changed over the years, just like many other spirits have, and what we’re trying to do at UWA is to infuse a modern flair into the tequila market. When individuals think of tequila, the majority of them will immediately refer to it as a shooting spirit, when in fact it’s so much more than that. “We’re trying to encourage people to start enjoying tequila’s as you would a single malt whisky, especially with our seven-month aged reposado and our 14 month aged añejo. It’s all about re-educating the consumer and we’re hoping to help others pave the way in doing so too. We’re not trying to tell people how to drink their tequila, we’re encouraging them to explore it in different ways they may not have tried before, like in cocktails or putting it on ice so it can be sipped.” With a strong, contemporary brand, UWA stands out from the sea of traditional designs that most tequila companies boast. The design was born in the town of San Miguel after Michael visited his art-loving mother