Welcome to the Inaugural Agavos International Spirits Competition.
The world’s top tequilas, mezcals, and agave spirits are invited to face off in Tequila Matchmaker’s inaugural blind judging competition. Brands vie for medal designations and have a chance to be awarded the soon-to-be iconic Agavos award.
Why enter? There are over 3,400 tequila brands listed in the Tequila Matchmaker database, and over 400 Mezcal brands in the US market. For many emerging brands, it’s difficult to stand out. The Agavos Awards was designed to give these brands needed exposure not based on the size of their marketing budget, but on the quality of their product.
An Agavos Award can distinguish you from your competition. Winners will not only be able to use the award logo in their marketing, but awarded tequilas will also receive an Agavos badge on their Tequila Matchmaker product profile. Plus, we will get to know your product enough to consider featuring it in our online educational content.
Why the Agavos Awards?
Let’s face it, agave is special. It’s the only source material grown worldwide that is capable of making a robust and delicious spirit that’s ready to drink directly from the still. Because of this, we felt it deserved its own recognition. Thus, the Agavos Awards: a competition designed specifically for agave-based spirits.
Agavos is the Greek root word for agave, which in Greek mythology was a symbol of passion, desire, health and transformation — all great reasons to enjoy our favorite spirit.
Do we really need another sprits contest in the world? Yes, because the Agavos Awards is different. It’s built around the values of fairness and transparency that have always guided us at Tequila Matchmaker.
Products will be purchased retail, so we are sampling the same products that any consumer might buy off the shelf. The products will then be tasted blind by judges who have deep experience and respect for the gifts agaves bring.
Of course, we are not doing this alone. We have partnered with the reputable spirits competition company AMCP, administrators of the ASCOT Awards and John Barleycorn Awards, to handle entries and logistics.
We are also introducing another differentiating factor: all tequilas that earn an Agavos Award will be signified with an award icon in the Tequila Matchmaker app and website.
So, let’s start 2025 with a great new tradition – honoring agave with a competition designed to highlight the best of agave spirits, in all their forms.
Grover and Scarlet
● Entry Information
Agavos Awards categories recognize a broad range of the agave industry, such as Aging, Proof, Batch Size, Special Release, and Marketing and Bottle Design.
01. Register / Login
Upload your company logo, fill in a company description and your social media information.
02. Enter
Input your title of entry – Fill in the requested company information and choose a category. There is a three-step category process. You will be given a choice of a main heading such as Tequila, or Mezcal, followed by a choice of sub-categories. For example, choices under Tequila would be Blanco, Reposado, Añejo. The third level would be the category number you see in our list, for example: 01. Regular Blanco or 02. High-Proof (46+% abv) Blanco.
03. Checkout
You will be given the option to pay by check or credit card. If you click check, you can mail a check or go back into My Account later and pay with a credit card.
If you enter a Marketing category, after checkout you will be given the opportunity to upload files, logos and/or word documents for each entry. You can also revisit your entries on your My Account page at any time to upload additional files or edit project information.
Upon payment, you will receive an automatic email receipt and accounting of your entries.
The online entry system is quick, easy and extremely flexible. After registration, you can go back into your My Account at any time and add entries, pay and upload files.
For Taste categories, you will be prompted to send two (2) 750 ml bottles of each entry to our Dallas processing center at 127 Pittsburg St. Dallas, TX 75207.
For Marketing + Design categories, you will have the opportunity to upload work samples, photos, etc. any time after checkout. Each category during the entry process will detail the materials or summaries required for judging. Any common file type is acceptable. Submit only one copy of each entry. For example, one bottle for bottle design or label.
Fees are $475 for Taste categories, $110 for single element Marketing + Design entries and $175 for Marketing Campaigns. If an entry is submitted in more than one category, an additional entry fee is required for each time it is entered. If you enter (3) or more Taste entries, enter promo code 15OFF at checkout for a savings of 15% off your entire order.
Best In Class: Top scoring samples
Double Gold: Outstanding; earns top marks from all judges
Gold: An excellent product; meets very high standards; highly recommended
Silver: A well-crafted product deserving recognition
Honorable Mention: Meets the standards of the industry
Products and companies that win Best of Class or special awards will be presented with the iconic AGAVOS Award, a custom metal statuette.
All other medalists will have the option to purchase the award for $250. The optional purchase keeps entry fees reasonable and doesn’t require entrants to subsidize awards won by others.
All winners receive a complimentary foiled certificate and are provided access to AGAVOS graphics, information, and use of name without any charges or licensing fees.
Marketing + Design categories must be entered online. Taste can be entered online or by printing an entry form and sending it in with your entries.
For Taste entries, enclose two (2) 750 ml bottles or three (3) 500 ml bottles per entry. We ask that the bottles entered be purchased from a retail store. You can either send them directly from the retailer using a delivery service or provide a proof of purchase receipt. Please contact info@agavosawards.com should there be an issue with a product not being in a store. Marketing + Design categories like bottle design, send one bottle per entry. Include a copy of your completed entry form in your shipment. Write on the boxes: “Sample materials, Not for resale. Glass enclosed.”
Send to:
AGAVOS Awards
127 Pittsburg St
Dallas, TX 75207
Shipments from Outside the United States:
International entrants needing assistance with import into the United States, please contact info@agavosawards.com
Agavos judges are selected based on their history of tasting activity for Tequila Matchmaker. Only those tasters who can articulate aromas and flavors and have shown a knack for rating all tequilas fairly and have completed at least 50 ratings are then considered for the panel.
Entries are blind-tested and graded on a 100-point scale based on a series of criteria relating to appearance, aroma, taste, and finish. Top scores in each class will advance to a championship round where they will be retasted to determine winners.
Marketing + Design entries are evaluated at random and given a score that will determine whether they are category winners. In most instances, there is no need for extensive explanations by the entrant. Work is judged on its own quality, creativity, and resourcefulness.
The Agavos Award
Winners in all categories will have the option to purchase the iconic AGAVOS award, a custom metal award for $250.
The optional purchase keeps entry fees reasonably priced and doesn’t require entrants to subsidize awards won by others.
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