Best Tequila Subscriptions

Taster’s Club is our top recommendation

By
Sam Schick
Sam Schick
Sam Schick
Sam has worked as a sous chef and bar consultant for over 15 years, and as contributor to Simply Recipes since 2020.
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Updated April 15, 2023
Sam Schick

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Photo composite of a bottle and aged tequila in a glass with lime wedges.

Simply Recipes / Design by Amelia Manley

In the cozy world of Mexican spirits, agave is the plant that’s kept on giving, and none of its gifts have gone as far as tequila. Any distillation of the plant is considered mezcal, but only the blue agave can be credited for the delicious nuances of a proper tequila.

You can spend your next 10 years taking notes on the many flavor profiles of tequila and mezcal at large, but joining a tequila subscription club might be your best opportunity to discover, learn, and enjoy the spirit. Here are the top tequila subscriptions for every budget and lifestyle.

Best Tequila Subscriptions of 2022

  • Best Overall: Taster’s Club

    Taster’s Club

    Taster’s Club

    Why We Chose It: Hard-to-find tequilas complete with ample tasting notes make this our pick for best overall.

    Pros
    Rewarding for both connoisseurs and newbies
    Shipping included in price
    Great accompanying materials
    Full-sized bottles

    Cons
    Shipments are not pre-announced
    Unclear which distilleries are partners
    Additional bottles are not discounted

    Taster’s Club is our best overall recommendation for a simple reason: It delivers a full-sized bottle of tequila (or occasionally another mezcal) to your door every month at a good price and with a strong focus on lesser-known distilleries and hard-to-find bottles. Past featured brands include Tequila ArteNOM Selección, Ayate Tequila, Centinela, Tequila Revolución, and more. Consider the informative, contextualizing tasting notes that accompany each shipment, and you have an experience as ideal for the novice as the old hand.

    The two membership levels center around the learning experience, with a great deal of information on the production, flavor profiles, and general sense of each bottle. The Tequila Club starts at about $55 per month and gets right to it with interesting, unexpected choices. The Pro Club starting at about $85 per month, comes through with even harder-to-find bottles. All memberships, whether gifted or direct, are available in three-, six-, or 12-month durations, and may all be canceled at any time without penalty. Shipping is included.

  • Best for Gifting: Mash&Grape

    Mash&Grape

    Mash&Grape

    Why We Chose It: Affordable, customizable shipments of characteristic mezcals make this our pick for best gift subscription.

    Pros
    Impressive curation
    Ships to most states
    Great in-house marketplace
    Detailed tasting notes

    Cons
    Three-month subscription minimum
    Further purchases aren't discounted

    Our choice for best gift subscription, Mash&Grape delivers a perfectly balanced blend of must-have standards and relative unknowns that would be a delight to see on any doorstep. Three membership options are available: three, six, or 12 months. All amount to $54 per month but payment is due upfront. The company ships full-sized bottles around the third week of each month. 

    Each expertly selected bottle is accompanied by detailed tasting notes and stories on the small distillers and independent bottlers they source from, including Tequila Partida Reposado, 120 Organic Uno Blanco, and Hussong’s Reposado. All options are prepaid and shipping is included.

  • Best Practices: Maguey Melate

    Maguey Melate

    Maguey Melate

    Why We Chose It: Terrific small-batch selections from sustainable, family-owned producers, shipping to 49 states, make this our choice for best practices.

    Pros
    Emphasis on sustainability
    Great materials and resources on history, character
    Hard-to-find and covetable spirits
    Excellent shipping

    Cons
    Delivery frequency could be greater
    Subscriptions may not be paused

    Maguey Melate’s mission-driven approach to supporting artisanal mezcal amounts to more than best practices and virtuous sustainability—the result is some of the highest quality and representative bottlings you could find on any market. Its own concerns for environmental and health impacts along with fair treatment make for a club you can trust implicitly for both the greater good and by the glass, with best-in-class examples of the spirit.

    Each $120 bimonthly subscription showcases individual producers with deliveries of two 375ml bottles, each spotlighting a featured agave varietal and a mezcalero (who does the distilling). Educational materials go deep into the history and production of each bottle. Shipping is included with all subscriptions and extends to every state except for Massachusetts. All purchases help fund the replanting of agave through local sustainability projects. It’s a win-win.

  • Best Variety: Flaviar

    Flaviar

    Flaviar

    Why We Chose It: A focus on sample sizes allows Flaviar to bring many more experiences to your table.

    Pros
    Shipments include tequila and mezcal
    “Flavor spiral” puts each spirit in context
    Access to online shop with 15,000+ spirits

    Cons
    Samples could be larger

    Flaviar gets our nod for best variety not solely for its inclusion of other mezcals than tequila, but for the sheer diversity of tastes you receive with each box. With the annual subscription ($315), you’ll receive eight shipments—your choice of a full-size bottle or a Tasting Box containing three 1.5-ounce samples—at a frequency of your choosing. The Tasting Boxes allow you to go deep, as the samples light up your palate and interests with tiny windows into other dimensions of the spirit.

    Flaviar’s other memberships send you one product of your choice each month ($60) or two products of your choice anytime within three months ($110), products being either a Tasting Box or a bottle from Flaviar’s curated selection. All memberships extend the same perks: access to live events and the Flaviar community, free shipping, and discounts in the online store. You can choose from various themes and tasting boxes that change periodically. Flaviar ships to 42 states.

    Continue to 5 of 5 below.

  • Best Splurge: Spirited Gifts

    Spirited Gifts

    Spirited Gifts

    Why We Chose It: The biggest splurge is also one of the best introductions to tequila in all of its styles, agings, and dynamism.

    Pros
    Great all-around tequila education
    Variety of aging types
    Bottle engraving is available

    Cons
    Expensive
    Only ships to 33 states

    Spirited Gifts' tequila subscription is most definitely a splurge, though this might make it one of the best and most generous gifts. At $379 for a three-month subscription, members receive one full-sized bottle every month, each of a different aging. Where silver tequila, also known as blanco, is aged for a short time (if at all), reposado is rested anywhere from two months to a year in wood casks, and añejo at least a year.

    Playing to its name and reputation for delivering top-shelf gifts, bottle engraving is also available, as are other themed treats, from mini bottles to gift baskets. All make for a unique experience or introduction to tequila.

Final Verdict

Nearly every tequila subscription service has something to offer, with so many bottles and so much variety still to explore. All of the clubs we looked at hold mezcal and tequila up on a pedestal and truly look to honor the distinct nuances of the spirit, but they approach their subscriptions from different angles. You’ll need to decide whether you’re interested in mezcal at large or just tequila, and perhaps how artisanal you’d like your bottles. Frequency and bottle or even sample size are key considerations, as are price and any other perks.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do Tequila Subscription Boxes Work?

Tequila subscriptions are membership-based services that deliver different bottles of mezcal—sometimes specifically and exclusively tequila—to your door every month or quarter. Some bill on a monthly basis, others upfront or only quarterly, but nearly all of these clubs allow for easy cancellation with no additional fees. Shipping costs are usually included, and discounts on bottles you’d like to purchase are typically available.

Who Are Tequila Subscriptions Best For?

Unlike most spirit clubs, tequila subscriptions are just as ideal for the tequila beginner as they are for the enthusiast. Even subscriptions ostensibly designed as gifts for beginners curate great collections of lesser-known, hard-to-find, and truly characteristic bottlings. The experienced are guaranteed to learn of many new producers, while those new to the spirit will be amazed by how much nuance there can be.

How Much Do Tequila Subscriptions Cost?

While some bill monthly and others bimonthly or quarterly, membership prices work out to anywhere from $32 to $83 per month, based on our research. Nearly all subscriptions offer discounts for three-, six-, and 12-month commitments, and all of those we’ve seen allow for penalty-free cancellation at any time.

Methodology

Pouring over every subscription service we could find, we considered the curation, prices, and value of the memberships. After seriously considering nine different clubs, our goal was to identify subscriptions that brought unique value.