Jay Baer Details Rigorous Methodology Behind Top Tequila Brand Rankings

In a recent LinkedIn post, Jay Baer discusses the intricate process behind ranking the top tequila brands amidst a rapidly expanding market. Baer, a prominent voice in marketing and customer experience, shared insights from The Tequila Report’s Summer 2026 edition, emphasizing the importance of independent reviews and a robust methodology to guide consumers through hundreds of brands and thousands of bottles.

Baer highlights the foundational element of their rankings: a panel of 15 independent reviewers. These experts submit scores for over 350 brands, with the final Top 150 list being a direct result of this collective, yet individual, assessment. As Baer explains the process:

“Each of our 15 reviewers scores brands independently on a 100-point scale. They do not see one another’s scores, which helps prevent a single opinion or group consensus from influencing the results.”

This approach is designed to mitigate bias and ensure that the rankings reflect a diverse range of expert opinions. The article details how scores are processed, noting that the highest and lowest scores for each brand are removed before averaging the remaining ratings. This “trimmed average” is then converted to a 10-point scale for the final public rankings.

Ensuring Quality and Independence in Rankings

Baer further elaborates on the criteria for inclusion, stating that a brand must be tasted by at least seven panel members to be eligible. This ensures that only brands with sufficient data and a reasonable level of distribution or recognition are considered. This requirement, as Baer points out, means that newer or smaller brands, despite their quality, might not yet appear on the list due to a lack of widespread tasting data.

A critical aspect of The Tequila Report’s methodology, which Baer stresses, is the strict prohibition of any commercial influence on the rankings. He makes it unequivocally clear:

“Brands cannot pay their way onto the list. There is no submission fee, no paid placement, no advertiser consideration in the scoring, and brands do not see or approve their scores before publication.”

This commitment to impartiality extends to the reviewers themselves, who are barred from scoring any brand that has compensated them for other work. This multi-faceted approach aims to create a trustworthy and objective guide for consumers.

The Compressed Score Landscape

One of the most striking findings from this edition, according to Baer, is the remarkably tight distribution of scores among the top brands. He notes the significant number of ties, with nine brands achieving a score of 9.5 and thirteen scoring 9.1. This compression, Baer argues, is a testament to the increasing quality and variety available in the tequila market today.

“And one of the most interesting findings from this edition is just how compressed the scores are. Nine brands tied at 9.5. Thirteen brands tied at 9.1.”

Baer concludes by encouraging engagement from those in the tequila industry and enthusiasts alike, inviting feedback on what stands out in the latest rankings. The full article, he mentions, provides all 150 brands with their scores and NOM numbers, a detailed methodology explanation, and a printable PDF shopping guide.