Take A Wild Ride On The Jose Cuervo Express

After 226 years of perfecting the art of making tequila, it’s no wonder that Jose Cuervo is the best-selling brand of tequila in the world. As a matter of fact, the company is responsible for producing 20% of the tequila consumed worldwide! I’m sure many people, myself included, the Jose Cuervo name induces memories of wild college parties and horrific hangovers. It may come as a surprise, though, that the brand also distills high-quality tequilas that sell for as much as $200 per bottle. When I discovered that not only did Jose Cuervo offer top-shelf tequila but that you could enjoy them during a tasting on a luxury train ride through Mexico, I jumped at the opportunity to experience it first-hand.

I booked my scenic sunset train ride and tequila tasting in the Jose Cuervo Express’s brand new Elite Wagon. Nicknamed the “Tequila Train,” the Jose Cuervo Express now features a luxury train car with massive scenic windows, comfortable lounge-style seating, and an open bar stocked with their finest tequilas. As I read the description online, I painted a mental picture of a leisurely day visiting an agave field. I would follow that up by exploring the sleepy Mexican town of Tequila. Finally, the day would conclude with a relaxing tequila tasting during the evening train ride back to Guadalajara. I. Was. Wrong.

It didn’t take me very long to realize how far off the mark my predictions actually were. Especially around 10 am when a waiter served me my first tequila drink. The day essentially turned out to be one giant party. I’m not complaining about it at all, I had more fun than I could ever have imagined. Let me break down my experience below, and hopefully, give you all the reason you need to take this trip!

The Ride Down

The tour begins and ends in the city of Guadalajara. Around 8:30 Saturday morning, I arrived at the meeting tent outside Casa Cuervo. I checked in with the staff, got my designated wristband, and climbed onto my assigned tour buses. With over forty people signed up for the English-speaking tour, we were all on one bus together. The bus included entertainment systems in the backs of each seat, similar to what you see in airplanes. USB charging portals are also at every seat. Water and soft drinks are available throughout the hour and a half ride. Drinking tequila on the bus down was not permitted per government regulation.

In the early part of the journey, most people struck up conversations about where they were from and the places they have traveled. Sitting near me were three couples from North Carolina and a couple from New Zealand. Together, we formed a little group that went on to spend most of the day together.

To add some excitement, our guide got the party started with a bingo-style game for the entire bus to play. The winners of each game won a complimentary bottle of tequila! 

The Agave Fields

A waiter greeted me with a plastic bottle filled with a tequila drink as I stepped off the bus at the agave fields. Again, I wasn’t expecting any drinking to take place until the train ride back that evening. So, while this was a bit of a surprise, I can’t say that I was too upset about it.

A few dozen smiling faces crowded around our guide with drinks in hand as he introduced us to Antonio. Antonio worked in the agave fields as “El Jimador,” or a man who harvests the agave plants and shaves their outer portion off in preparation for transport to the distillery. Antonio was proud of his blade skills and excited to show them off to the crowd. After his impressive demonstration, he pulled a few volunteers from the group to try their hand as a jimador. I’m pretty sure he did it just for a laugh, but everyone was a good sport, and it provided some quality entertainment.

Our tour guide explained the entire process throughout the demonstration and shared some interesting facts about tequila and the agave plant. For example, did you know that authentic tequila can only come from a specific region in Mexico? Or that there are over 150 varieties of agave plants? Only one of them, though, the blue agave, can be used for making tequila. 

After the demonstration, you have about an hour of free time to explore the agave fields. A small lunch is available at no charge, and two open bars sat under a covered patio, dispensing unlimited complimentary tequila drinks. I enjoyed a taco and tequila with some of my new friends before roaming the grounds to snap some photos.

Distillery & Tequila Museum

After everyone got their perfect Instagram shots, it was time to head to the town of Tequila for a tour of the Jose Cuervo distillery. The whole group loaded back onto the bus with full drinks in hand. I’m not exactly sure what happened to the previously mentioned government regulations, but they seemed to have stayed behind somewhere in the agave fields. 

When we arrived in Tequila, we were escorted directly to the distillery and tequila museum for a tour of each. The tours were fast-paced and might have lasted an hour in total. Which was fine by me, and I think everyone else as well. The party vibe was already starting to kick in, and it was barely noon. Despite the brevity of the tours, we learned a lot about the process of making Tequila, as well as the history and cultural importance of the famous Mexican spirit.  

We sat at two large tables in a shaded courtyard for our first official tequila tasting in between visiting the museum and distillery. Our guide taught us the proper way to drink tequila. Much like a wine tasting, the process involved swirling the tequila, holding your glass properly, and different ways of smelling the drink to pick up on specific flavor profiles. 

Our guide turned us loose with both tours and tasting complete to explore the small town of Tequila. Keeping with the emerging trend, the good people at the distillery couldn’t have us leave empty-handed. So, as we exited the facility, staff members served us a variety of margaritas to-go. All of these drinks were adding up quickly!

The Town Of Tequila

Mexico has designated the town of Tequila as one of its Pueblos Mágicos. These Pueblos Mágicos offer visitors a unique experience through their beauty, cultural significance, food, and art. Tequila felt like a small-town square in America, bursting with Mexican charm and flavor. There was live music and tequila everywhere you looked. The brightly colored little town felt like one giant party!

The tour allows for about two hours to explore the town however you would like. Some people found a restaurant to sit and eat. Others walked the streets to take pictures and shop for souvenirs. Everyone drank tequila.

Performance In The Amphitheater

Before boarding the train for our tequila tasting and ride back to Guadalara, our tour guide instructed us to reconvene at the amphitheater, near where we started our distillery tour. 

Honestly, I was dreading this part. There was going to be a performance of traditional Mexican dancing and Mariachi music. I’ve found myself in similar situations all around the world in the past. The performances almost always feel like some hokey, watered-down, inauthentic tourist show that fails miserably to capture the culture’s true essence and history. However, I soon found out that this was something entirely different.

The theater quickly filled with hundreds of Tequila-filled guests ready to keep the party going. My best guess is that around 95% of the people in the theater were Mexican, nowhere near the number of tourists from the US I would have assumed. 

The performance included men and women doing traditional dances, some with knives and small swords! All the while, a large band played fast-paced mariachi music in the background. Eventually, the mariachi band took over the performance. Apparently, they played all of the greatest hits because the entire theater was out of their seats, dancing wildly, shouting, and singing along to every word. I didn’t have to recognize any of the songs or even understand the lyrics to get caught up in all the excitement. Every face lit up with a smile, and the atmosphere was absolutely electric! 

Of course, margaritas were served throughout the performance, right up until it was time to board the train for the main event.

Train Ride & Tequila Tasting

We all climbed back onto the large tour bus for the final time. Again, with drinks in hand, for a 20-minute ride to the train station. Upon arrival we were greeted by a live mariachi band and a very casual security screening. After everyone snapped a few more photos in front of the train, we boarded our assigned cars and found our seats.

The seating arrangements included couches, comfy chairs, bar stools, and even a couple of tables. You are assigned a specific seat, but free to switch it up in order to socialize more easily with any new friends you’ve made throughout the day. Our guide rearranged some seats to include me and the couple from New Zealand with the group from North Carolina.

Almost as quickly as we settled in, the drinks started flowing. Waiters come by throughout the journey with a variety of unlimited cocktails and appetizers. Shortly after the train rolled out of the station, our official tasting began.

A far cry from the low-key tasting I had envisioned, the party was now in full swing. The tequilas that were part of the tasting were served generously in champagne flutes and refilled upon request. And there were a lot of requests. Our guide handled the revelry like a pro, teaching everyone as much about the tequilas as he possibly could. The favorite, by far, was Jose Cuervo’s Reserva de Familia Extra Añejo.

The tasting ended, but the drinking most certainly did not. Everyone on the train laughed, danced, and cheered all the way back to the train station in Guadalajara.

Arrival At Guadalajara Station

The train ride lasted just under two hours. Which I learned is exactly the amount of time it takes for all of that tequila to really hit you with full effect. Dozens of rosy-cheeked tequila lovers reluctantly stumbled of the tequila train, back into the real world. Of course, we had to get a few more pics of the crew before trying to make our next move. We shared taxi’s to our respective hotels, with plans to meet up soon to continue the party in the city.

As I arrived back at my hotel, I decided more partying was probably not the best decision to make. As I have mentioned, I thought this was going to be a much more tame experience, something like a wine tasting at an upscale vineyard. Due to this very false assumption, I booked a 7 am flight the following morning! So, I would call it a night early and get plenty of rest before my 4am alarm started ringing. Wrong again.

Back At The Hotel

As soon as I entered my hotel, I ran into a group of German guys in town for a wedding. They had also taken the Jose Cuervo Express tequila journey and recognized me from the train. Long story short, we partied all night. One of them even FaceTimed my parents for nearly an hour. I couldn’t even begin to guess what all he said to them!

Luckily, though, I made my flight without issue. The experience ended up being so much more than I ever dreamed it would. Through all of the mental fog, I actually learned a lot of interesting facts about tequila and its significance to Mexican culture. The day was an absolute blast and exceeded all of my expectations. As is so often the case in travel, though, the best part about the trip was the awesome people I met along the way.