Tequila Investment Companies Compared (2026)

Tequila barrel investment is still a young market. There are only a handful of specialist companies, they publish very different amounts of information, and the terms are not standardised the way they are for funds or shares. This guide sets out what each company says about itself on its own website, side by side, so you can see the differences and know what to ask.

A note on fairness: Tequila Reserve publishes this guide, and we are one of the companies compared. We also work with two of the others: House of RARE is our partner, and we collaborate with GORDON. We have used only what each company publishes, quoted their claims rather than paraphrasing them, and dated every check. We have not verified other companies' claims, and nothing here is a recommendation of any provider.

In this guide:

1. Tequila investment companies at a glance

2. Each company compared

3. Other ways to invest in tequila

4. How tequila investment is regulated in the UK

5. How to choose a tequila investment company: 8 questions to ask

6. Where Tequila Reserve fits, and the risks

Tequila investment companies at a glance

All details below come from each company's own website unless stated, checked on 21 October 2026. "Not published" means we could not find it on the public site; it may be available on request.

Tequila Reserve is set to offer multiple tequila barrel investment programmes, so barrels, prices and exit options may differ between programmes. The details above are for its current Buffalo Trace offer.

The tequila investment companies, compared

Tequila Reserve (by WineFi)

Tequila Reserve is the tequila barrel arm of WineFi, a UK fine wine and spirits investment platform, and is set to offer multiple tequila barrel investment programmes. Its current offer is a whole 200-litre barrel of tequila aged in casks that once held Buffalo Trace bourbon, priced at £5,240 per barrel. For this offer, the purchase price includes all fees, insurance and storage for the first three years. The details below describe the current offer; barrels, prices and exit options for new programmes may differ.

• Storage and ownership: barrels are stored in CRT-authorised warehouses under the custody of the distillery in Jalisco, Mexico. Each barrel gets an official serial number registered with the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT), the tequila regulator, and owners receive a certificate of ownership by email.

• Hold period: three years is the recommended minimum, the time it takes for the tequila to become extra añejo, the most mature recognised category.

• Exit (current offer): after three years, owners can keep ageing to five, seven or ten years, design a limited bottling under their own label with our partner House of RARE, who provide bespoke bottling and distribution, or sell, either through Tequila Reserve for a 15% commission or privately. Owners can request bottling or withdrawal at any time.

• How it makes money: the difference between what it pays for the tequila and what investors pay. Where investors use its exit service, it may also receive a share of the commission on the sale. Any costs after the first three years depend on the exit route and are disclosed upfront, charged at current market rates.

• Tax: Tequila Reserve has independent UK tax advice that cask tequila should qualify as a wasting asset, so UK tax-resident collectors should generally be exempt from Capital Gains Tax on a gain.

Read more in introducing Tequila Reserve and our process.

GORDON Premium Spirit Investments (Tequila Reserve collaborator)

GORDON, "The Premium Spirit Cask Investment Company", is one of the companies Tequila Reserve collaborates with. It is based in Dubai, serves clients in the UK, Singapore and Hong Kong, and is led by co-founder and CEO Samuel Gordon, who has nearly a decade of experience in premium spirit investment (GORDON). Demand has been strong: in 2024, Gordon said a fundraising round for 100 casks closed in 48 hours (WealthBriefing).

• What you buy: casks of "high-quality new make (unaged) spirits" from partner brands, mainly tequila, with some Scotch and Japanese whisky. The website says contracts are signed directly between clients and brands.

• Price: "Individual casks of tequila start at approximately $2,500", and investors typically start with $50,000 to $100,000. In a 2024 interview, Samuel Gordon gave a minimum of £2,300 per cask and said people typically buy ten (WealthBriefing).

• Terms and exit: terms of 3 or 10 years. At the end, investors can take an optional buyback by the brand at a price fixed in advance, or sell on the open market.

• Fees: set out in its offering documents. Gordon has said the firm takes a 10% performance fee on profits, so it earns more when its clients do.

• Return options: GORDON offers a choice of structures: a free-market option, where casks are sold at market prices; a fixed option; and a minimum-return option backed by a buyback from the brand at the end of the term. Investors who prefer a more predictable outcome can choose the buyback, while those who want market upside can sell on the open market. Full terms are set out in GORDON's offering documents.

Tequila Financial

Tequila Financial is a US platform for buying barrels of newly distilled 100% agave tequila and holding them while they age, with an office in Los Angeles and founder Jeremy Kasler (Tequila Financial).

• What you buy: full barrels, or portfolios of barrels, filled at certified Mexican distilleries. Prices are shown only after you register.

• Storage: included for up to eight years, at CRT-certified distilleries in Mexico.

• Ownership: printed and digital ownership certificates, confirmation of filled barrels, an online portal and annual third-party stock reports.

• Hold and exit: it recommends a four- to eight-year hold. Sales are allowed after a one-year holding period, and it helps arrange a sale to bottlers and brands, paying proceeds "less a nominal trading fee" (How it works).

• Return claims: "16.24% projected annual growth". Its safe harbour statement says projections are "illustrative only and are not guarantees of future performance", and lists risks including evaporation, leakage and "the absence of a public market for aged tequila or tequila barrels".

House of RARE (Tequila Reserve partner)

House of RARE is Tequila Reserve's partner for bespoke bottling, and calls itself "the tequila aging company". It has headquarters in Houston, operations in Mexico City and works with some of Jalisco's most respected distilleries, including Cascahuín and Atanasio (House of RARE).

• What you buy: individual barrels through "Private Barrel Ownership", plus custom collections for families and programmes for family offices and funds.

• Storage and ownership: barrels are aged in partner distilleries' cellars "with CRT oversight and insurance", and each comes with a certificate and serial number. Insurance is included in annual storage.

• Exit: "bottling with partners or secondary sale routes, subject to regulations".

• Price: shared on enquiry through its website.

• Background: House of RARE also makes its own award-winning tequila. In 2026 it acquired the Herencia de Agaves distillery (NOM 1648) in El Arenal, Jalisco, and is building an ageing cellar there. Its releases won Double Gold, Best of Category and Tequila of the Year at the American Distilling Institute's 2025 awards (InsideHook).

Colecta

Colecta describes itself as "the first tequila barrel brokerage in Hong Kong and Asia" (Colecta).

• What you buy: barrels of 100% Blue Weber agave tequila, from blanco to extra añejo, from CRT-certified distilleries.

• Storage and ownership: insured, climate-controlled warehouses in Jalisco, with legal title and CRT certification.

• Exit: resale through Colecta to collectors, brands, hotels, members' clubs and bars, or bottling.

• Price and fees: not published.

• Return claims: a "15-20% annual target". Its FAQ lists market, damage, regulatory and liquidity risks.

Cask Capital

Cask Capital is an online marketplace for cask-aged spirits and wine, where ownership is recorded as a token on a blockchain (Cask Capital). Warehouses, bottlers and distilleries list casks directly.

• What you buy: whole casks or fractional units. Tequila ("premium añejo and extra añejo") is one category alongside whisky, rum and wine; the listing we saw on 21 October 2026 was a whisky cask at 169 USDC (a dollar-pegged digital currency) per unit.

• Storage: bonded custody in "disclosed UK and partner warehouses".

• Exit: secondary trading on the same platform; no detail on liquidity.

• Fees: not published on the home page.

• The site lists GORDON as a partner and warns that buying cask-aged assets "involves risk, including possible loss of capital".

Other ways to invest in tequila

Barrel companies are not the only route. You can also:

• Buy shares in a drinks company. Listed groups such as Diageo own large tequila brands, but tequila is only one part of their business. Private brands sometimes raise money on crowdfunding sites. We compare this with owning a barrel in investing in a tequila company vs owning a tequila barrel.

• Collect bottles. Finished bottles stop ageing once filled, and most never sell for more than retail. See tequila barrels vs bottles.

• Invest through a fund or special-purpose vehicle. US platform Alts.co has offered tequila deals to verified accredited investors (Alts.co, 2022, updated 2024), but these are generally not open to UK retail investors.

How tequila investment is regulated in the UK

Buying physical spirits is not an activity regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). City of London Police has warned that cask investments are not FCA-regulated, so investors have no access to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if something goes wrong, and may fall outside the Financial Ombudsman Service (City of London Police, November 2023). That warning was about whisky, but the same applies to tequila barrels.

The tequila itself is tightly regulated in Mexico. Tequila can only be made from 100% Blue Weber agave in a designated region centred on Jalisco, and the CRT tracks barrels through official serial numbers and seals. That gives you a way to check a barrel exists, but it does not protect your money the way FCA rules protect a regulated investment. Read more in our guide to the risks of investing in tequila barrels.

How to choose a tequila investment company: 8 questions to ask

Because there is no regulator setting the rules, the questions you ask are your main protection. Ask every provider, including us:

1. What exactly do I own? A specific, identifiable barrel with a CRT serial number, or a share in a pool, a contract or a digital token?

2. Where is the barrel, and who holds it? Aged tequila has to stay in Mexico's authorised territory. Ask which distillery or warehouse, and whether you can visit.

3. What documents will I receive? Look for an invoice, a certificate of ownership and the CRT registration, and ask how you can check them independently.

4. What does the price include? Ask for every fee in writing: storage, insurance, management, performance and exit fees, and what they cost after the first period.

5. How do I get out? Ask what exit routes exist, what they cost, what happens if no buyer is found, and whether you can bottle or take delivery instead.

6. How is any fixed or minimum return structured? Some providers offer buyback or minimum-return options alongside market-based exits. Ask how the buyback works, who the counterparty is and what happens at the end of the term.

7. How does the company make money? A margin, upfront fees, annual fees or a share of the sale price each create different incentives.

8. Who is the company? Check its legal name, registered address, who runs it and how long it has traded. Be wary of pressure to decide quickly.

For what makes one barrel worth more than another, see what makes a tequila barrel valuable.

Where Tequila Reserve fits, and the risks

Tequila Reserve is set to offer multiple tequila barrel investment programmes. For our current Buffalo Trace programme, we publish the price (£5,240 for a 200-litre barrel), the exit commission (15%, charged only if you sell through us) and what the price covers (all fees, insurance and storage for the first three years). Each new programme will set out its own barrels, prices and exit options. We earn more when you sell higher, so our incentive is to get you the best possible price. Each barrel is registered with the CRT, insured and held at the distillery in Jalisco, Mexico. The full process is explained in how tequila barrel investment works.

The risks are real, whichever company you choose. Barrel investment is illiquid, and there is no guarantee of a buyer, or of a particular price, when you want to sell. Values can fall as well as rise. Tequila's secondary market is young, with fewer past sales to guide pricing than whisky (see tequila vs whisky investment).

FAQs about tequila investment companies

What are the main tequila investment companies?

Specialist tequila barrel investment companies include Tequila Reserve by WineFi (Global), GORDON Premium Spirit Investments (Dubai), Tequila Financial (US), House of RARE (US and Mexico), Colecta (Hong Kong) and Cask Capital, an online marketplace where tequila is one of several categories.

Is tequila barrel investment regulated in the UK?

No. Buying physical spirits, including tequila barrels, is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, so the Financial Services Compensation Scheme does not apply. The tequila itself is regulated in Mexico by the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT), which registers each barrel.

How much does it cost to invest in a tequila barrel?

Prices vary by company and barrel. Tequila Reserve's current programme charges £5,240 for a 200-litre Buffalo Trace barrel, including fees, insurance and storage for three years. GORDON quotes casks from about $2,500. Several companies only share prices on request.

How do I choose a tequila investment company?

Ask what exactly you own, where the barrel is held, what documents you receive, every fee in writing, how and when you can exit, and how any fixed or minimum return is structured. Check who runs the company and do not let anyone rush you.

Can tequila investment companies offer fixed returns?

Some providers offer fixed or minimum-return options, usually through a buyback agreement with a brand or distillery at the end of the term. These work differently from selling at market prices, so read the terms and ask who the buyback counterparty is. Market-based returns are never guaranteed, and values can fall as well as rise.

What is the difference between a tequila investment company and investing in a tequila company?

A tequila investment company sells you the tequila itself, usually a barrel that ages in Mexico. Investing in a tequila company means buying shares in a brand or drinks group, where your return depends on how the business performs.