It’s no secret that tequila is a fast-growing category on Drizly. In 2022 to date, the subcategory accounts for an 18 percent share of the liquor category, which is up from 15 percent in 2020 and 13 percent in 2019. In addition to increased interest for heritage and Mexican-owned tequila producers, celebrity-owned tequila brands are some of the key drivers of the category’s growth over the past five years.

For retailers, knowing the best-selling celebrity brands is important when making stocking decisions, and in some cases, the top-selling celebrity tequila brands are also among the top-selling on Drizly overall. Wine, beer, and spirits are no strangers to celebrity ownership and endorsements, but tequila is one of the biggest.

“Rosé is the other category where we have seen several celebrity-owned brands drive sales,” says Liz Paquette, Drizly’s head of consumer insights, “though we have seen celebrity owned brands popping up across nearly every category.”

One thing for retailers to note with tequila is that the subcategory’s price point is rising along with its share of sales. “Overall, the top-selling celebrity-owned tequila brands’ sales tend to mirror overall tequila trends like premuimuization,” Paquette says.

Tequila’s average price point has crept up since 2018 from about $38 to about $49 in 2022. Much of that is due to the increase in interest and price of the reposado and añejo styles, to which Drizly consumers are trading up from the blanco category.

“We always recommend retailers keep a pulse on new releases, even within crowded categories like tequila or hard seltzer,” Paquette says. “We still see new brands — particularly when they have the awareness boost from being celebrity owned — become top sellers.” 

In the end, it’s important to remember that quality wins out with consumers. “The celebrity backing and the built-in marketing platform that comes with celebrity backing plays a role in popularity. However, the overall quality of the product remains important for overall staying power,” Paquette says. “Casamigos is a great example of this as it has become the number one tequila brand on Drizly.” 

1. Casamigos

Founded by actor George Clooney and businessmen Rande Gerber and Mike Meldman, Casamigos is not only the hottest celebrity tequila, but the top tequila brand on Drizly overall. The brand was started in 2013 and acquired by Diageo in 2017. In 2022, Casamigos is the best-selling tequila brand on Drizly and each of its three SKUs — Casamigos Blanco, Casamigos Reposado, and Casamigos Añejo — sits in the top five sellers of its respective subcategory. The brand’s most expensive SKU, the añejo, is the second-best selling añejo tequila on Drizly after Don Julio 1948. Casamigos also makes a mezcal SKU.

Gift orders are an important component of tequila’s rising share of sales on Drizly, and Casamigos is a top-gifted tequila brand. Both the Casamigos Blanco and Añejo are among Drizly’s most-gifted tequila SKUs.

2. Teremana

A relatively new entry to the celebrity tequila brands, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson started Teremana in 2020. Over the past two years, it’s grown to the No. 7 best-selling tequila brand on Drizly in 2022 to date and the second-best selling celebrity tequila. Teremana produces a blanco, reposado, and añejo, and the blanco is the best selling Teremana SKU on Drizly.

Reposado tequila recently became a top 10 selling subcategory on Drizly, edging out light lager. The reposado offerings from top celebrity-backed brands are helping drive that — Teremana is the No. 5 most popular reposado overall on Drizly and Casamigos is the second.

3. 818

Kendall Jenner launched 818 in May 2021 and among the three SKUs — 818 Blanco, 818 Reposado, and 818 Añejo — the brand’s blanco style leads sales on Drizly. Overall, 818 has risen to the No. 15 brand on Drizly in the short time since its release. The name comes from the area code for the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles, where Jenner calls home, and the tequila is made using tahona-crushed agave from the Los Valles region of Tequila.

4. Cincoro

Michael Jordan and four other NBA team owners released Cincoro in 2019. It’s now the fourth-best selling celebrity brand on Drizly, and the No. 17 best-selling tequila brand on Drizly. Unlike Casamigos, Teremana, and 818, the most popular Cincoro SKU on Drizly year-to-date is the añejo, followed by the reposado, blanco, and extra añejo.

5. Código 1530

Código 1530 started in 2016 and is now the No. 18 top-selling tequila on Drizly. George Strait’s brand has carved a specific niche for itself with its pink Rosa Reposado tequila, the best-selling SKU from the brand on Drizly (followed by the blanco, añejo, reposado, and extra añejo). The Rosa Reposado gets its color from being rested in French oak barrels used for Napa Cabernet instead of neutral American oak or ex-bourbon barrels.

Código 1530 also makes two mezcal SKUs — the Ancestral and the Artesanal.