Dré Masso, co-creator of Altos Tequila is an industry legend with extensive experience. Born in London with Colombian heritage, he was brought up in the London bar industry. He has previously owned Green & Red tequila bar and prior to moving to Colombia, he was based in Bali as Director of Bars at Potato Head. He currently owns Opium Cocktail and Dim Sum Parlour Bar in London’s Chinatown and he is about to open a new bar in London called Fam.
During his visit to Sydney to launch the Altos Tequila Cantina Ecologica competition, we spoke with Dré Masso about the inspiration behind Altos Tequila, how he and co-creator the late Henry Besant brought their concept to life and the sustainability initiatives that Altos is undertaking.
Corinne Mossati: You’re the co-creator of Olmeca Altos. Why tequila?
Dré Masso: I’ve always loved it and the environment around it. I met Tomas Estes in La Perla, and I felt right at home. I got a tap on the shoulder and it was him. He said, “Welcome home”. I fell immediately in love with him. He invited me to a tequila tasting in 2003 and brought with him Julio Bermejo. I was wowed by him. I got a feeling from him that if I’m ever in San Francisco to come to Tommy’s. I took it as an invite. I spent 6 months following him around, he was constantly sharing information. I learnt a lot about hospitality. In 2004, he said he wanted to take European bartenders and journalists to Mexico. I was on that trip; it was the best trip of my life.
Why tequila? I was into it, as soon as I really discovered it, I wanted to know more about it and also share it with London.
What was the motivation behind creating Altos?
We went back to Mexico every year and in 2007, we were asked to go to Destilería Colonial (de Jalisco) and have a chat. They had something in mind and Jesús Hernandez (Maestro Tequilero) was experimenting with different blends. We kind of had a foot in the door, and they appreciated that there were these bartenders who wanted to create something for the bartending community.
Henry and I would talk, “if we were to do it, how would we do it”. We kept hammering home that there were regular tequilas but some of them weren’t so great. Some good brands started to be available in London but at an expensive price point. We realised if we had the chance to make something, it would be for everyone, for using in cocktails, they can shoot it if they want, and it’s got to have an attractive price point.
How did you get started in bringing the concept to life?
We started in 2007 and released it in 2009. London was a few months after that. There was a lot going on there with branding and packaging and working with the team. There were aspects that maybe we didn’t have a say in. We got feedback from different markets. We launched in passionate tequila markets. Russia was developing a bar community, same in Turkey with Istanbul. We launched a training program and in the US, we launched 6 months after that. Now we’re in 27 markets, soon to be 32.
As a bartender, were there any challenges in going from behind the bar to creating spirits?
Our case is different. We’re not owners of the brand. We had an agency and it was brought on to collaborate and add to the concept. When you talk about ownership, there are lots of factors to consider.
We were privileged that Pernod-Ricard has supply channels and is a well-known organised global company that allowed us to accelerate fairly quickly. If we were brand owners, there’s massive amount of investment that goes into it, and time and energy. Moving from bar owners to brand owners, all their time is absorbed into the success of their brand, a lot of them are taking cuts. It’s a difficult environment. But for us it was an organic experience. Luckily, we were a good team, and even today, ten years later they value our input, and by “our” I mean a collective of bartenders and ambassadors who are part of the committee of Altos.
What makes Altos tequila unique compared to other tequila brands?
A few key factors. They own a large part of their agave. What they don’t own, they contract from families they’ve worked with for a long time. They use high quality agave from the highlands that produces a very rich flavour profile. Altos honours tradition in particular the use of the tahona wheel. Only 7 distilleries of 150 still do that. It’s a blend of two distillates from the same agave crushed in two different ways. It’s honouring tradition but also mixing that with a fresher style. We wanted wonderful flavours for cocktail making and it’s a combination of sweet, savoury, citrus and spice, a great starting point to have something complex and layered to build on.
What are some of the factors that you had to consider in creating a tequila “by bartenders for bartenders”?
Price point is key. As a tequila bar owner, it comes from that. When we opened, we wanted to pour 100% agave. We had to go out of our way to get it at a reasonable cost and we knew how important it was.
There’s no big marketing with Altos, no big posters or commercials. It’s always been geared towards the bartender, valuing the bartender’s opinion, knowing how important they are in the grand scheme of things. So we decided, let’s get a good price point and support them in other ways, give them incentives, take them to Mexico and build on the association of Mexican culture with the product.
How important is sustainability to the brand and what steps is Altos taking to ensure a sustainable future?
As I was revisiting the distillery, sustainability was a hot topic and Jesús was already thinking about that. The first element that struck me is that he respects people working for the company, in particular the jimadores. He wanted to guarantee yearly work as they are often contracted for short harvest periods. He worked on composting agave fibres, converting pH levels, making them into compostable materials and quality soil. He’s also looking at ways of being more energy efficient. It hasn’t been done because of a trend but because he has a broader understanding of the business. The zero waste goal is 2022. Jesús’ son is heavily involved and thinks we’ll get there before then.
You’re in Sydney to launch a sustainability incentive in venues. Can you tell us about it and how bartenders in Australia can get involved?
Bartenders are asked to work as a bar team to promote sustainability in their bars inspired by Altos tequila and global trends. The Altos Tequila Cantina Ecologica competition is open to all states in Australia. Bartenders are asked to submit a business plan by 1st December detailing the bar’s initiatives. 8 finalists will be chosen by Altos and myself on 14 December, they will receive $200 to implement their sustainable practices during Altos Week, between 15-23 February. The winning team will be announced on 2 March 2019 and sent to Jalisco Mexico in April 2019.
Any closing comments
I encourage bartenders to look at TahonaSociety.com and become a member. There’s a good webzine with deeper information than what’s on there. Also take a look at “The Collective Spirit”, the evolution of sustainability where we visited 12 countries and did short seminars where we showed examples with cool initiatives happening in our industry. There’s also the Henry Besant Scholarship, a 10,000 USD grant given to someone in the industry usually in an underprivileged situation to help them improve their career. It’s the first year we’re doing it and at the moment, we’re taking nominations.
In partnership with Pernod-Ricard Australia.
Dré Masso Photo Supplied
