Tequila - Blanco tasting

My friend Rob and I got together for a blanco tequila tasting. As a longtime admirer of the fresh citrusy agave notes in blanco tequilas, I have been wanting to sit down and take some tasting notes and do a comparative rating:

The contenders:

1. Herradura Silver ($30, 40% vol.)
2. Don Julio Blanco ($36, 40%vol.)
3. Partida Silver (42, $0%vol.)
4. Patron Silver ($40, 40%vol.)
5. Casa Noble Cristal ($36, 40%vol.)
6. Siete Leguas Silver ($NA, 40%vol)
7. Don Eduardo Silver ($33, 40%vol.)

Pictured L-R: Casa Noble, Don Eduardo, Don Julio, Herradura, Partida, Patron, 7 Leguas

Folllowing is a tasting note summary for each tequila with final scorings/rankings at the end. Tequilas were tasted blind (thanks to some help from Julie) along with some Sangrita, and were rated on a 50-100 scale. There was some discussion during the tasting to describe and compare some of the taste profiles.

#1 Herredura Blanco
Matt's Notes
Nose - something off, a chemical aroma, flawed
Taste - more of the same
Finish - peppery, spicy
Score: 70-

Rob's Notes
Barf/Charitably papaya on the nose. Some cedar, woodsiness
Score: 75

#2 Don Julio Blanco
Matt's Notes
Nose - very round, vanilla, beeswax
Taste - full bodied, vanilla, dulce de leche.
Finish - smooth, round
Score: 93

Rob's Notes
Full-bodied, chardonnay oaky nose. Caramel initially on the palate, unctuous mouthfeel.
Score: 95

#3 Partida Blanco
Matt's Notes
Nose - delicate, citrusy
Taste - not a lot of flavor development. Agreeable, but not a lot of character.
Finish - hot, not too complex
Score: 88

Rob's Notes
Lighter, not much flavor. Hot & peppery finish. Agreeable.
Score: 88

#4 Patron Silver
Matt's Notes
Nose - Citrusy
Taste - citrus, vanilla. Medium-bodied (less body than #2)
Finish - long, smooth
Score: 92

Rob's Notes
Lighter - refined. Smooth finish. Great agave flavor.
Score: 91

#5 Casa Noble Crystal
Matt's Notes
Nose - Vegetal
Taste - More vegetal elements
Finish - medium length
Score: 89

Rob's Notes
Bland. B.O. on the nose. Wet newspaper, vegetal flavors.
Score: 80

#6 Siete Leguas Blanco
Matt's Notes
Nose - wet cement
Taste - more wet cement
Finish - long, cementy
Score: 86

Rob's Notes
Not much on the nose. Somewhat indistinctive but pleasant flavor. Pepper and wet cement on the finish.
Score: 89

#7 Don Eduardo Silver
Matt's Notes:
Nose - mostly vanillin. Buttered, steamed cauliflower.
Taste - full-bodied agave, citrus vanilla
Finish - medium length
Score: 90

Rob's Notes
Full mouthfeel, creamy finish. Minerally, pleasant.
Score: 90

Summary Ranking
#1 Don Julio Blanco (93/95)
#2 Patron Silver (92/91)
#3 Don Eduardo Silver (90/90)
#4 Partida Silver (88/88)
#5 Siete Leguas Blanco (86/89)
#6 Casa Noble Crystal (89/80)
#7 Herradura Blanco (70-/75)

All of these tequilas were enjoyable with the exception of the Herradura Blanco which has something off in the nose and palate which both of us considered flawed and discounted the score accordingly.