Adam Dobson taps into the premium tequila boom in travel retail with Nohaca

SINGAPORE. Former Diageo and Silent Pool Gin executive Adam Dobson, who helped steer Silent Pool’s transformation into a premium label, is turning his focus to shaking up the tequila category with the launch of Nohaca.

Under his newly established holding company Sip Neat, Nohaca is an authentic single-origin and sustainable additive-free tequila from the highlands of Arandas in Jalisco, Mexico.

Represented by Singapore-based CoLab in selected duty-free markets, the brand made its debut at the TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition in Singapore this May.

At the event, Dobson spoke with The Moodie Davitt Report Founder and Chairman Martin Moodie about the brand’s beginnings and his plans to drive growth in travel retail.

Nohaca’s origins 

Dobson set out to find a standout spirit – one that matched the standards of premium packaging and aligned with growing consumer interest in high-quality tequila. His foray into tequila began after being introduced to a Mexican distiller.

He said, “I’d been working with Simon Paul and a distributor in Mexico. It turns out his brother was a distiller. I tasted their house brand. I’ve been really snobby about tequila for many years because I just never found great liquid. You can find it, like Fortaleza, which is amazing, but it’s always on allocation. You can never find it in a shop.”

The family distillery’s artisanal philosophy resonated deeply with Dobson, as both share a deep respect for agave. Their uncle, the saucero, leads the harvesting process, working closely with just three trusted local farmers.

Dobson sees fermentation as the defining step in capturing the spirit’s character and quality, and the distillery’s approach only reinforced that idea.

Their innovative use of a custom French-Canadian yeast marks a deliberate shift from the widely used Champagne yeast to deepen the flavour during the fermentation process.

That same commitment to flavour extends beyond fermentation, with the agave roasted for 60 hours in a brick oven, far exceeding the 12 to 18 hours most producers allocate, allowing for deep caramelisation and a natural honeyed sweetness.

Once roasted, the agave undergoes eight days of fermentation, rather than the typical four or five, allowing native yeasts and local flora to enrich the flavour and develop regional character.

While the standard ABV in Mexico is 38%, Dobson chose to go higher to 42% as a way to preserve natural texture and flavour, amid rising concern over additives and artificial flavourings in the spirits world.

He said, “That ABV also helps carry the flavour through the palate. Commonly with white spirits, you get a flavour hit on the front of the palate, then it dissipates at the back. This carries all the way through. Some people say they can even taste it in their throat, so it’s a very exciting liquid.”

Designed to disrupt the shelf

Packaging played a key role in shaping the brand’s identity, with Dobson opting for a look as distinctive as the tequila itself.

He said, “I wanted consumers to walk down the shelf or look at the back bar and see something distinctively different. It’s about building a sense of discovery – in finding something unique, but also something you’d want to take and give as a gift. We leaned into a lot of what we see in travel retail as well, what I call ‘mineralisation’.”

Designed with both practicality and shelf impact in mind, the bottle features a tall neck for easy handling and pouring, while distinct markings near the top ensure each variant is immediately recognisable. Another distinctive feature is the coloured coin on the neck.

Dobson reveals the meaning embedded in the labels. “The haka comes from ‘nómadas haciendo caminos’ (nomads making paths). It’s about forging something new and different through a sense of discovery.

“That allows us to tell the story through labels: the gods who created it, the animals who protect it, and the hands that make it. It’s a really natural advocacy story – something we can share with bartenders and consumers without being overtly production-led. It’s a little bit more storytelling.”

With sustainability in focus, each bottle is made from fully recycled glass sourced just two hours from the distillery.

Dobson explained, “We’re trying to keep a tight carbon footprint. In luxury and especially spirits, it’s very difficult to be completely carbon-neutral, due to the water required for production. The beauty of additive-free tequila is that you have to use tequila itself to wash the bottles when you’re bottling it. That means there is less water wastage.”

Just as the distillery continues to innovate in tequila production, it is also actively investing in eco-conscious upgrades. As one of only three brands partnered with the distillery, Nohaca has built a strong partnership that supports its long-term growth strategy.

Poised for global growth

With bold ambitions for global expansion, the company is preparing to launch Nohaca across 14 domestic markets, including the USA, Canada and, notably, Mexico.

While most foreign tequila brands avoid entering the Mexican market due to high taxation and stiff local competition, Dobson conducted market research in Los Cabos to explore the brand’s potential, uncovering a clear demand for additive-free, high-ABV tequila with luxury appeal.

He said, “If you’re a discerning spirits consumer who doesn’t want to be ostentatious, wants to sit and enjoy something – that understated quality – that doesn’t quite exist in the mainstream.”

Nohaca is launching its Plata and Reposado expressions in 1-litre formats, larger than the standard 75cl. The expressions are priced at US$110 and US$125, respectively.

Positioned within the upper level of the premium tequila category, Nohaca is priced to reflect its quality while remaining competitive in the global travel retail space.

Dobson is tapping into a global surge in demand for luxury spirits, with premium tequila in the US$50-US$150 range proving to be one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing segments in the category.

He said, “Tequila is preventing some of the decline in luxury spirits. On that luxury branding front, Scotch and Cognac are now slowly being overtaken by tequila, which is incredibly exciting.

“The category is hugely underrepresented in the channel. That presents a huge opportunity for retailers to bring in brands that are new and different, but that tick the right boxes for the travelling shopper.”

Travel retail takeoff

After a strong showing at TFWA Singapore, Nohaca is targeting strategic growth in key markets, including China and India. Chinese consumers, Dobson noted, are especially drawn to the Reposado expression for its unique cask-finished profile and layered taste.

Nohaca is pursuing collaborations with key retailers across different markets. Dobson said, “We are currently shipping to some new markets in the room, and the statement and intent of being here is that we’re working with the likes of Heinemann and DFS and getting in early in those conversations.

“When we get to later in the year, we can start to develop those relationships further. In the Americas, we’re talking to DFS and Avolta, since they’re well-established tequila partners as well.”

As he targets growth in travel retail, Dobson believes the winning formula lies in combining strong brand identity with a premium-quality spirit. While eye-catching packaging attracts attention, it’s the quality of the spirit that ensures repeat purchases, he said.

With continued softness in the spirits market, driven in part by sluggish performance in categories such as Cognac, Dobson sees opportunities emerging for brands that can diversify.

He concluded, “People are now trying to shore up a little more in multi-category, whereas before they would have said, ‘No, we’re just a whisky retailer’, or ‘just a Cognac retailer’. Having a single-brand, multi-category solution – something that’s a bit fun and different and exciting –  is going to be good.”