For the past six years, sales of premium tequila have been averaging growth of 20 percent per year. The good side of that is that the rot-gut stuff that is only half agave is becoming less popular and the finely crafted good stuff is showing up in more and more bars. But which brands are for real and which ones are just riding the bandwagon?

Fortunately, most of the good stuff is quite good, so most of the silliness in pricing comes from fancy hand-blown bottles, silver medallions, and carved wooden cases. If you’re paying more than $80 for a bottle that hasn’t been aged for years, you are likely paying for one of these marketing enhancements.

Siembra Azul (Blue Harvest) tequila is a nice departure. Trusting buyers to purchase based on taste instead of flash, this is a high-end, high-scoring tequila that puts its money into agave fruit instead of eye candy bottles.

I’ve been sipping the añejo version of Siembra Azul this past week and it ranks among the best I’ve sampled over the years, with the distinct floral and herbal overtones you get from the highland regions of Jalisco and the perfect interweaving of flavors you get from an attention to high quality throughout the process. In this region, the agave plants grow at an average elevation of 7200 feet above sea level, giving them a terroir and flavor profile that many believe is more distinctive and complex than the brands grown at lower elevations.

This version was developed by David Suro-Piñera, a Guadalajara native who has owned a restaurant and tequila bar in Philadelphia since 1986. He wasn’t content to go halfway: each liter requires around 11.5 kilos of agave, compared to a standard level of 7 kilos. The agave piñas are roasted in ovens for 36 hours, with each oven cleaned between roastings. There’s double distillation, copper pot stills, and then the añejo is aged for 12 months in new American oak barrels.

The quality shines through and this tequila has been winning raves in blind taste tests, even before the judges find out that the list price is $45. But what about a hook? Anything to make Siembra Azul really stand out from the pack? Well, how about this—it’s kosher!

For more on the subject, see our feature story on premium tequila in Jalisco.

We just got the reviews posted for the best hotels in Zihuatanejo: Casa que Canta and Tides Zihuatanejo.

Casa que Canta continually shows up as one of the best hotels in Mexico, at times topping readers’ polls as the best hotel in Mexico and Central America. I’m not sure I’d go quite that far, but it definitely is in the top 10. The big draw here is the setting, with the buildings looking like some fantasy sand castle rising out of the hillside. The structures dominate the view from both Madiera and La Ropa beaches, but are not ostentatious.

The location provides amazing views from the balcony or terrace of pretty much any room and it’s hard to top the feeling of dining with a panoramic view and the sound of waves hitting the rocks below. Now if only you didn’t have to hike to the beach…

Tides Zihuatanejo gives up the views from on high and instead gets direct access to a beautiful beach. The former Villa del Sol was already a great hotel before it became part of the Kor Hotel Group’s Tides brand, but now it is getting a makeover that is bringing it up to the decadent standards of the best hotels in Mexico. Expect to be pampered at every turn here, from the spacious rooms with every expected amenity to the terrycloth neck pillows and waitress service at the beach.

For a romantic vacation, a honeymoon, or just a reward for lots of hard work, you can’t go wrong at either of these fine Zihuatanejo hotels. Split a week between the two and you’ll get the best of both worlds.

In another sign of the shakeouts and consolidation in the luxury vacation ownership club market, Ultimate Resort (www.ultimateresort.com) and Private Escapes (www.privateescapes.com) are set to become one company. This is a merger of the second-largest and third-largest operators, so this development will lead to a Pepsi and Coke duopoly at the top of the scale in this industry.

According to the company press release, “The new combined club…will account for more than 25 percent of the total market share and boast a global resort real estate portfolio with a fair market value of $200 million.”

There’s a high amount of geographic overlap in these clubs, so in some ways this is bulking up more that providing more breadth. Even after the merger, there are only “nearly 50 destinations,” with the Latin America choices limited to a few spots in Mexico and Costa Rica. (Hint,–these clubs love Los Cabos.)

Depending on how much of a payment you can swing, you’re routed into one of three pecking orders. “The combined company will operate three distinct destination clubs targeting the $1 million, $2 million and $3 million average home value club categories.” There are now 1,200 combined club members, but no word on how many are in that highest category.

Expect a bit of membership campaigning and due diligence before the planned closing in mid-November. The final named of the merged destination club is to be determined.

We just posted a new feature story in our Luxury Tours section: Luxury Yacht Cruises on the Sea of Cortes.

This is a story on the yacht rentals that operate out of the Marina CostaBaja in La Paz, Mexico. Our writer, Diana Rowe, details her trip around the Sea of Cortes in a 62–foot motor yacht complete with captain, mate, and chef. Quarters are not all large, but they come with a flat screen television, wireless Internet access and a private bathroom with hot shower. Read the yacht cruise story for more on La Paz, snorkeling/diving expeditions along the Baja Peninsula, and fresh fish tacos.

Well, the hype will hopefully die down now that the contest is over to name the new Seven Wonders of the World. Three of them are in Latin America:

Chichen Itza in Mexico

Machu Picchu in Peru

Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio, Brazil

I detect a bit of ballot-stuffing on the last one, but any contest like this is bound to be hotly contested no matter how the votes come in. I like Wendy Perrin’s post on the subject, noting that you’d have to be living under a rock to not know these places are worth a stop. Many would argue that they are already getting way too many visitors as it is, putting a major strain on what made them great to start with.

Frankly though, I’m glad that Chichen Itza made the cut instead of Tikal. We don’t need more tour buses heading to the latter, filled with obese people who can’t make the 20-minute trek through the jungle to get to the start of the pyramids. Difficulty can be a good thing when it comes to preservation.