The Red Rocker’s Real Deal: A Conversation with Sammy Hagar About Santo Tequila and Why Celebrity Spirits Don’t Have to Suck

In a world where celebrities seem to launch new booze brands faster than you can say “más, por favor,” it’s refreshing to meet one who actually knows the craft inside and out. Enter Sammy Hagar, the Van Halen frontman turned tequila mogul who’s been perfecting agave spirits since before many of today’s faces of celebrity tequila could legally drink them.

Nearly three decades after launching Cabo Wabo (you know, back when tequila wasn’t cool and celebrities weren’t slapping their names on every boozy bottle in sight), Hagar has teamed up with flavor king Guy Fieri for Santo Tequila. It’s a partnership that sounds like it was born at 2 AM in a Cabo cantina but is actually built on serious craft credentials and an obsessive commitment to keeping additives out and authenticity in.

We caught up with the Red Rocker to talk shop about what makes Santo different in an increasingly crowded field, why most celebrity tequilas are doing it wrong, and how he’s managed to avoid those legendary tequila hangovers for nearly 30 years in the business.

The Vintner Project: What sets this tequila apart from others in the increasingly crowded celebrity spirits space? Why is it great or just different, beyond the celeb names attached?

Sammy Hagar: Santo is a brand where Guy and I are intimately involved in the creation of the actual tequila. This isn’t a situation where someone has approached us about slapping our names on the bottle of a tequila from a distillery we have never even visited, from a master distiller we have never met. I have been in the tequila game since I opened my Cabo Wabo Cantina in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico in 1990. Ever since then, I have insisted on a hands-on approach.

Just like my music, I would never just put my name on something someone else had created. I want to know exactly what goes into my tequila, which leads me to the other non-negotiable: Santo is nothing but agave, water and yeast. Anything else just isn’t truly tequila. Santo has no additives at all.

TVP: Can you share a bit about your and Guy’s involvement in the creation or ongoing development of the brand—beyond what’s written on the website?

SH: What you see is what you get with me. Always has been… with my music and my tequila. Guy and I always taste what’s coming off the still or what’s coming from the barrels personally. For example, with our latest Extra Añejo release, I can’t tell you how many samples we went through before Guy and I thought it was absolutely ready for prime time. I think we have both set a standard for quality in everything we do, and that shines through with Santo.

What should someone expect from this tequila? How would you recommend drinking it? Any fun cocktails it really works in?

SH: The first thing anyone should know is this is authentic tequila—made exactly like it would have been made more than a century ago. So, what you are going to experience with Santo is a very agave-forward flavor. There are no additives to disguise the use of bitter, immature agave or to make it taste more like vodka or to make it look like it is aged longer than it truly is.

An agave-forward tequila like Santo really shines in a margarita. It does not disappear; it adds an earthy layer of complexity that unfolds as you drink it. Guy and I really both love bold flavors and Santo is exactly that. Drink it on the rocks when you want to experience what real agave tastes like. Our Añejo and Extra Añejo are exceptional sippers.

TVP: What’s one thing people don’t know about this tequila—say, a production detail, sourcing secret, or surprising accolade?

Well, aside from me launching the “celebrity tequila” category back when I launched Cabo Wabo Tequila back in 1996—when Cabo Wabo and Patron were the only nationally available super premium tequilas in the United States—I guess I would say the lineage of this tequila dates back to when I was in Van Halen and I personally sourced tequila from a local producer to serve at my Cabo Wabo Cantina to my fellow musicians and friends—directly out of the barrel! I have been deep in the trenches with my tequilas since then. Let’s not say I am obsessed with the craft and lore of making tequila, but again, sometimes an obsession can be a good thing, right?

TVP: How has your perspective on the tequila category evolved over the years?

SH: I think it’s no secret I have been bullish on the tequila category since I started in this business nearly three decades ago. In fact, next year will be my 30th year in tequila. Only thing I have done longer than that is rock and roll and being married to my beautiful wife!

The reason I am so in love with tequila is it is the real deal. There is an authenticity to it, a real heritage that I just love. You’re not taking grapes from a beautiful hillside in Bordeaux or botanicals from your English garden to make this spirit. You are taking one of the most intimidating looking plants in the world, grown in one of the harshest environments in the world, and creating one of the most amazing spirits. I mean, who looked at an agave and said, “I’ve got a great idea!”

I have seen this category grow from mixto gold tequilas in the 80s, which were just plain awful, to people discovering (and demanding!) high quality 100% agave tequilas, like Santo. That upgrade in quality has really made the category explode in recent years. That said, I do not like where some have headed with adding additives. It’s really such an insult to the heritage of the category and I hope consumers really take a close look at what they are drinking.

TVP: You and Guy Fieri are both known for big personalities and big flavors. Do you ever clash on this project?

SH: I don’t think Guy and I have ever clashed on anything, from music, to food, to cars, to tequila, to beautiful places on the planet to visit. We are pretty much cut from the same cloth, and that’s what makes us great partners. We are both full, 100% pedal to the metal, passionate people. And when two of those types of people get together, you can do some pretty powerful things.

TVP: Ok, let’s be honest—there are a lot of celebrity tequilas (and adult beverages in general) out there now. What do you think most of them are getting wrong? Anyone getting it right?

SH: I think the trap a lot of folks fall into is someone comes to them and tells them all they have to do is slap their name on the label and they will make a handful of dollars. And maybe some of them do, but to me what makes a successful brand is one where I am fully engaged and understand all that goes into it. I want to know the history behind it. I want to see where the agave comes from and talk to the farmers. I want to know the entire process from cutting the piña to fermentation to barreling. I want to be really proud to serve my tequila to my friends and family. I think any celebrity who is truly engaged in the craft of making tequila can be successful. Those are the folks I think who are getting it right.

TVP: If Santo had a theme song—or a signature cocktail that sums up the brand’s personality—what would it be and why?

SH: Without a doubt it would be my song “Mas Tequila” because it’s all about tequila in every way: straight from a bottle, from a terracotta jug, from a Bota bag… any way you drink it—Santo is good tequila.

If there was a signature drink, I would just have to say a classic margarita served straight up in an ice-cold martini glass with a kiss of salt on one side of the rim. It doesn’t get much better than Blanco as my perfect preference for margaritas.

TVP: Tequila is deeply rooted in Mexican culture and community. How does Santo honor those traditions and the people behind the process, and how do you see the brand giving back to the regions that make it all possible?

SH: I think the first way we honor the culture is to be true to the heritage of making tequila. Santo is agave, water and yeast—the same way they have been making tequila for centuries. I think those who are using additives or fancy methods to create their tequilas are frankly insulting the generations of amazing people who built the entire industry.

Giving back to the community starts with supporting the local farmers. While some may tout their estate-grown and owned agave fields, I like that our distillery partner sources their agave from multiple farmers, contributing to the wellbeing of a broad group of families in the Highlands. Being successful also means good, consistent jobs for those who work at the distillery and fueling the local economy.

TVP: So, you know I have to ask… we’ve all had a terrible tequila experience (read: hangover) at some point. Do you have one you are willing to share?

SH: Well, personally, I have never been one to overdo it. The way I like to drink, especially in Mexico, when I’m at my Cabo Wabo Cantina and I’m hanging out with a lot of friends and musicians and we’re playing music all night and partying, I always eat food when I drink—that’s number one. Even if it’s just snacks, a taco here and there, chips and salsa, some guacamole and chips. But always keep adding food to your system if you’re going to be enjoying tequila late into the night.

Number two, I like to do a shot. Start out, put a little salt on my tongue—just a little bit, good salt. And then do a shot. I don’t need a lime, none of that. Sometimes you want a bite of orange or something just to clear your palate again for your next thing. Maybe a little while later, you do another shot. And I don’t mean like kill a whole shot glass. I mean two or three sips for a shot glass. When I make a margarita, I use good ingredients, of course. And then I just nurse that margarita until the ice melts and it gets warm. That’s the way I drink, never pushing it too far because I don’t want to wake up the morning regretting it!

I think the only really bad experiences I have had are when my friends come down to my Cantina and they are more interested in drinking tequila and telling great stories than getting out on stage and performing for the crowd. You know me. I want to rock! And if a bottle of Santo makes it out onto the stage with us, well, all the better!