Celebrity Chef Aldo Zilli becomes face of British tequila brand Mis Amigos as Essex firm strives to capture vast international market

British tequila brand Mis Amigos has announced that celebrity Chef Aldo Zilli is now their brand ambassador as they embark on a bold plan to put their bottles in the hands of mixologists behind cocktail bars all over the globe.

With annual UK sales of £500,000, the company has registered a division in the EU to sell more easily to its 27 member states and it will begin trading in 20 US states by the end of next year, where it already has orders to ship 140,000 litres (12 forty-foot containers!) in 2024.

The Essex-based firm is also in negotiations with distributors in China, Peru, Chile, and Japan to sell its drinks, with one Chinese customer placing an initial order of close to a hundred thousand bottles.

Mis Amigos flavoured tequila is the product of eighty years of cocktail mixing experience by brothers Simon and Rupert Duke. They were less than happy with the products already on the market, the mixologist duo set about designing their own super-premium range, from behind the bar of their family’s Essex restaurant.

Three years later the recipes were perfected and the Dukes were ready and eager to share their creations with British drinkers and the world's drinkers, exporting their range of cream and flavoured tequilas, plus three premium vodka and gin lines, to Europe, Asia and the United States. 

Aldo Zilli said: “When I met the Mis Amigos guys and they showed me what they had created I could immediately see lots of different ways to use it in my cooking, and that it would be a great addition to Casa Zilli.

“Tequila is such a unique and subtle spirit that combines beautifully with chocolate, and the coffee flavour makes the best tiramisu and espresso martinis, and I can’t wait to make summer desserts with the strawberry flavour.

“I love the product, so I was honoured when they asked me to join the Mis Amigos family as their brand ambassador.”

Already 120,000 litres of Mis Amigos tequila have been shipped to Miami, most of which was loaded aboard cruise liners bound for the Caribbean, and Mexico which is the spiritual home of the blue agave plant from which tequila is made.

Since breaking into the US market, the Mis Amigos team have turned their focus towards Asia with CEO Gina Duke taking the family’s tequila to major international trade shows in Mumbai and Shanghai.  As a result, the first consignment of Mis Amigos is already being drunk in India, and it's hoped last month’s trip to Shanghai will see the Chinese market open up in 2024.

Gina said: “We are very much a family firm with old-fashioned family values and it’s very important to us who we work with.  When we met Aldo we knew instantly he understood us and would be the perfect brand ambassador for us.

“We are small and based in Essex in an industry dominated by some very huge players and brands.  But what we have is a unique blend of extremely high-quality ingredients, a ‘can do’ spirit and the belief our drinks are the best in the world.

“Last month I attended a trade show in Shanghai and already I have a headache because the Chinese want 70,000 litres of our premium gin!” 

The Mis Amigos range contains chocolate and strawberry cream tequilas, plus chocolate, coffee and chocolate and lime flavours.  The range also includes ‘88’ brand vodka and gin, and Jillion’s gin, named after the Duke family’s Aunt, who worked as a codebreaker at Bletchley Park during WW2.

Mis Amigos, 88, and Jillion’s gin are available in the UK at: www.gi-spiritgroup.co.uk or you can sample the pure Mis Amigos experience at La Quinta, in Benfleet, Essex, where Simon or Rupert will happily mix you a cocktail.  

Incidentally, they have three of their flavoured tequila's (chocolate, coffee, and chocolate and lime) that are vegan, as well as the vodka and gin, too.