Business

Understanding The Basics of Tequila

Published

3 years ago

July 17, 2023

The world of tequila contains more than a few surprises. Luckily, there are no better guides than Alec and Ana Tesa, founders of award-winning distillery Eleven20 Tequila.

“The first thing to understand is that there are a lot of fakes out there,” says Alec Tesa. Given the Tesas’ passion for traditional distilling techniques and Mexican culture, they’re the perfect people to explain the fundamentals of this amazing beverage, from what constitutes true tequila to identifying superior varieties and finding the best one for you.

Not all tequila is real

For a beverage to count as true tequila, it needs to meet certain criteria. “Most importantly, it must be made from blue agave in certain places, such as Jalisco, Guanajuato, and Michoacan,” Alec says. “That’s why we craft our artisanal tequila in the heart of tequila country.”

“While you might be able to buy spirits distilled from alternative kinds of agave in California or other places, these beverages taste different,” Ana Tesa adds. They also can’t be called tequila, which by definition must come from blue agave in Mexico.

“Terroir is important, just like with wine,” Alec explains. “Champagne only comes from Champagne, which is near Paris, and Bordeaux only comes from Bordeaux in the southwest of France. There’s something unique and magical about these places that lead to a truly special drink. It has to do with the soil, the latitude, the altitude — everything in the environment comes together perfectly to make lovely elixirs that are exclusive to those particular places.”

“The distillation of tequila from true Mexican blue agave is a beautiful and historic cultural tradition that can’t be replicated elsewhere,” Ana continues. “Keep in mind this knowledge has been handed down through generations. Proper tequila is made in Mexico by Mexicans, using methods they have refined for thousands of years.”

Unfortunately, illicit producers of fake tequila continue to try to fool consumers and often to great lengths to hide the provenance of their products, even reusing bottles from legitimate tequila distilleries to masquerade as the real thing. In addition to scamming people with lesser quality beverages, sometimes they also bottle their products with toxic substances that can have dangerous effects on those who drink them.

How to identify real tequila

To spot true tequila, the Tesas recommend reading labels carefully. “It might seem obvious, but the first rule to follow is to look for the word tequila specifically,” Alec remarks. “Not agave liqueur, not agave eau de vie, and not agave distillates — none of those are the real thing. Also, remember that mezcal is different from tequila as well, since it can be made from other agaves, not pure blue agave like tequila.”

“The bottle should be in pristine condition,” Ana says. “If it looks like someone might have taken the lid off and refilled it, then keep in mind that dubious beverage companies actually do that, so that might be what you’re actually looking at.”

“Don’t buy anything that doesn’t have a label,” Alec adds. “You really shouldn’t even accept a drink for free from a bottle like that!”

The Tesas also recommend purchasing tequila only from established, reputable retailers. “Avoid dodgy situations,” Ana continues. “Don’t try to buy it off the street or at a flea market. It might look like a good deal, but you’re really just getting ripped off.”

According to the Tesas, an even better way to verify authenticity is to look the beverage company up on the official list of producers, which the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT) makes available online. “If the company isn’t listed, it’s not what you want,” Alec says.

Even among real tequilas, a range of different qualities is available.

Identifying the best tequila

“The best tequila is made entirely from blue agave,” Alec says, “so look for ‘100 percent’ on the label.”

“You should also look for brands that don’t have any additives,” Ana adds. “The best tequila is pure. Similarly, if a label says ‘Mixto,’ that means it’s tequila mixed with up to 49 percent other things. For some brands, that means nearly half the drink is sugar.”

Ultimately, what makes a great tequila is its great taste. “Fancy packaging might look impressive, but you can’t drink it,” Alec says. “What’s more important is what that spirit tastes like neat.”

Tequila can also be aged in barrels for different periods of time, which changes the drink’s flavor profile. The youngest variety is called blanco, which goes straight to store shelves after bottling. Reposado comes next, having been aged for two months up to a year, while Añejo is the oldest, aged for one to three years.

“While many people favor aged tequilas, you’ll need to taste the different options yourself to see what you prefer,” Ana says. “Blanco tends to be flashier, which lots of people like best. Whiskey drinkers tend to prefer the older versions, which can take on hints of spices or vanilla from the barrels.”

Experience a Mexican tradition

Finally, the Tesas recommend buying tequila from producers that use traditional Mexican production techniques like Eleven20. “The best experience is an authentic one,” Alec says. “These processes might be slower, but the taste is more than worth the effort.”

For a true Mexican experience, make sure you turn to true Mexican tequila like Eleven20.

Business

How Technology Drives Value Creation in Private Equity

Published

4 days ago

April 29, 2026

Matthew Wiles

How technology drives value creation in private equity is now one of the most actively debated topics among institutional investors and fund managers. A decade ago, technology was largely a cost center in PE-backed companies. Today it sits at the center of margin improvement, revenue growth, and exit multiple expansion. Firms that figured this out early are generating better returns with less reliance on financial engineering.

The shift happened for a practical reason. As interest rates rose and deal multiples compressed, financial leverage stopped doing the heavy lifting. Operational improvement became the primary value creation lever. Technology accelerated what was possible within the ownership period.

How Technology Drives Value Creation in Private Equity Operations

Operational improvement through technology produces the most measurable results. PE firms apply technology tools to reduce costs, increase throughput, and improve decision-making speed inside their companies.

Digital Process Automation in PE-Backed Companies

Manual processes in back-office and production functions carry real costs. They consume labor, generate errors, and slow down the information flow that management teams depend on. Automation tools eliminate these costs without requiring headcount reductions that disrupt company culture.

The most impactful automation deployments in PE-backed operations include:

Accounts payable and receivable automation that compresses billing cycles and reduces days sales outstanding
Production scheduling software that reduces downtime and improves throughput in manufacturing environments
Inventory management systems that cut carrying costs by aligning purchasing with real-time demand signals
Quality control automation that reduces defect rates and warranty claims in product-based businesses

ZCG Consulting (“ZCGC”) works with companies across industrials, manufacturing, packaging, and consumer products to identify and implement automation programs tied to specific financial outcomes. The approach connects technology investment to measurable margin improvement rather than treating automation as a general upgrade.

Data Infrastructure as a Value Creation Tool

Many PE-backed companies arrive under new ownership with fragmented data systems. Different departments use different tools. Reporting requires manual consolidation. Leadership makes decisions with incomplete information.

Fixing that infrastructure creates immediate value. Integrated data systems give management teams real-time visibility into revenue, cost, and operational performance. That visibility accelerates decisions and surfaces problems before they become material.

James Zenni, founder and CEO of ZCG with over 30 years of capital markets experience, has consistently emphasized that information quality drives investment performance. That view shapes how ZCG approaches technology investment across the companies in its portfolio.

Technology Drives Value Creation in Private Equity Through Revenue Growth

Cost reduction gets most of the attention in PE operational improvement, but technology also drives revenue growth. The mechanisms are different, and they compound differently over a hold period.

E-Commerce and Digital Customer Acquisition

Companies that sell primarily through traditional channels often leave significant revenue on the table. Adding e-commerce capabilities or investing in digital customer acquisition expands the addressable market without proportional cost increases.

PE firms that invest in digital revenue channels generate higher growth rates during the hold period. That growth rate difference translates directly into exit multiple expansion.

Revenue growth technology applications in PE-backed companies include:

E-commerce platform buildouts that open direct-to-consumer channels alongside existing wholesale relationships
Customer relationship management systems that improve retention and increase repeat purchase rates
Digital marketing infrastructure that lowers customer acquisition costs through better targeting and attribution
Pricing optimization tools that identify margin improvement opportunities without volume loss

Technology-Enabled Customer Experience Improvements

Customer retention is cheaper than customer acquisition. Technology investments in customer experience, service speed, and product quality consistency reduce churn. Lower churn produces more predictable revenue. More predictable revenue supports higher exit valuations.

ZCG deploys Haptiq Technologies and Solutions, its 300-plus-person technology division, to support digital transformation across its companies. The platform was founded 20 years ago and manages approximately $8 billion in AUM. It brings implementation resources that most individual companies cannot afford to build internally. That capability gives ZCG’s companies faster access to technology improvements at lower execution risk.

Building Technology Capability Within PE-Backed Companies

Technology investment during the hold period creates value in two ways. It improves financial performance during ownership. It also makes the business more attractive to the next buyer.

Strategic buyers and later-stage PE funds pay premium multiples for companies with modern technology infrastructure. A business with integrated systems, clean data, and digital revenue channels commands a better price. A comparable business running on legacy platforms does not.

The ZCG Team structures technology investment as part of the initial value creation plan for each company. Priorities get set at entry based on the gap between current capability and acquirer expectations.

This pre-sale positioning approach changes how technology investment gets funded and sequenced during the hold period. Projects that improve financial performance and exit readiness simultaneously get prioritized. Projects with long payback periods that do not improve the sale narrative get deferred.

How technology drives value creation in private equity is ultimately about execution discipline. The tools matter less than the clarity of the financial objective each technology investment must achieve.