Sam Heughan with El Tequileño’s Tony Salles during his visit in Mexico.
Hey may play quite the romantic on his hit series Outlander, but in real life, Sam Heughan’s love is found most through world exploration or simply within a quality pour of the finest spirits around. Fortunately, both of his passions have recently become one with his newly announced The Sassenach Select Double Wood Reposado tequila.
The Sassenach Select limited-edition batch is available now in select markets. Being the founder of The Sassenach Spirits, Heughan says it was the bond formed between The Sassenach and El Tequileño that has made this new tequila product an exciting reality today.
“I think it comes out of friendship,” Heughan reveals to me today at Forbes on the inspiration behind the new tequila brand. “A couple of years ago, pre-Covid, we went to visit [Mexico]. I had very little experience with tequila. I think especially in the UK, we’re quite far behind the rest of the world in our appreciation for it. I was just completely blown. My eyes were opened the whole experience. We went to Tequila Town. We met Tony Salles, we met the whole family, Tequileño. Just to discover the whole process and the history and the heritage behind it. What was really fun was that we took our whisky with us. We were just launching. In fact, when we were there, we launched our first release of the Sassenach whisky and those guys were really excited for us. We celebrated with some whisky and they said they enjoyed it, and we enjoyed their tequila. It was really a very sort of natural, organic process.”
Tony Salles and Sam Heughan exploring the land in Mexico.
Even though Scotland and Mexico are on opposite sides of the world, Heughan says he has come to realize through his travels that their values and what matters most to the people from their proud lands are not so different between the two countries.
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“It’s a very dear place and they’re very similar actually, the Mexican culture and the Scottish culture. This love of storytelling and celebration and family. We just feel really honored to be part of that family.”
Being the holiday season and a special time where people are slowly starting to come together again, following nearly two years in this ongoing pandemic, Sam has his own strong opinion on why The Sassenach Select tequila should be a beverage people should consider responsibly indulging in during their next happy gathering.
“I just think there are so many tequilas out there and it’s hard to choose, but this one is completely unique. These guys have never created a tequila for anyone else. Tony Salles is third-generation master distiller. We didn’t compromise on the product. There’s no glycerine, there’s no coloring, vanilla, or the crap people put in there. We want to celebrate them. If you want a Christmas gift or Christmas treat, give this a whirl. You’ll not regret it.”
The Sassenach whiskey and El Tequileño’s The Sassenach Select tequila.
Regarding his own Christmas celebrations, I asked Heughan what his plans were for the upcoming holiday. “Well, I think I’m allowed to reveal that I’m going to actually be alone in quarantine over the Christmas period. I’m going to New Zealand, shooting Men In Kilts, our next season down in New Zealand, so I will be taking a bottle maybe of both [tequila and whisky], so it will be a very merry Christmas but quite a lonely one.”
Heughan is excited, however, to end the loneliness of his Outlander fans rather soon, when the long-awaited sixth season premieres on Starz on March 6, 2022. Being less than three months until viewers can see more from his beloved Jamie Fraser character, Heughan shared with me some early hints at what is to come on the popular drama series.
A glimpse at season 6 of ‘Outlander’ premiering on Starz on March 6, 2022.
“I would say the world that we know – the success of Fraser’s Ridge, the success of Jamie & Claire and their sort of extended family really goes into question and really starts to disintegrate. We have a blast from Jamie’s past and some relationships that come to plague him. It’s a pretty dark season actually. It’s a shorter season but the episodes are longer and a lot more time with the characters. We’re also building to The War of Independence. It’s literally on the horizon and it’s Outlander, so (laughs) prepare for a rollercoaster.”
As I wrapped up my conversation with Heughan, I left him with one final question – What message might you have for your loyal Outlander, Men In Kilts, and The Sassenach Spirits fans & supporters around the world this holiday season?
“Oh wow, that’s a good question. I guess, you know, stay warm. Reach out to your friends and family, if it’s in-person or online, and I know that we will be together soon, certainly for another season of Outlander. Yeah, enjoy the tequila! There’s not a hell of a lot of it because it is a small batch, but if you manage to get your hands on it, I hope you appreciate it because we put a lot of love and energy into it, and I guess friendship, as well.”
