“One of my big philosophies is women helping women and we’re very female focused," says Ann. "We wanted to come together and blend our creativity to make this female focused business around tequila, as well as physical and mental health.”
Produced in Amatitán, Jalisco, Mexico, Ladydragón’s range includes a blanco, plata, reposado and cristalino. With no artificial aditives or elements to speed up the fermentation process, Cortez says it’s a “longer process but we’re constantly fermenting tequila”. Ladydragón’s distillery is surrounded by fruit orchards that influence the natural fermentation process, which is said to add to the herbal and citrus profile of the tequila.
Cortez is a first-generation Mexican American, and her father’s family has lived and grown agave on their land in Guanajuato for generations. Ann is head of merchandising for Ladydragón’s agave fibre accessories line, which further supports its ESG initiatives by making use of the agave plant after its juice has been made into tequila.
Ladydragón takes its name from the Chinese zodiac sign of the dragon, and after living in Asia for 15 years, Cortez says: "You start to see certain correlations with your own culture. I wanted to combine all cultures as an expat, and you take a little piece of everything”.
Ann adds: “I’m also a gardener and flowers are a big part of my life so we came up with this bottle concept of being unapologetically feminine too. Tequila is often marketed to men, it’s got cowboys and is dark and moody, and we wanted to bring something different because we’re both really feminine.”
