To put it short, Zafiro Añejo is a fictional Tequila brand created especially for Breaking Bad. Gustavo Gus Fring used a bottle of this aged premium Tequila to poison Eladio Vuente and other members of the Cartel.
Later on, the brand also occurred in various episodes of the spin-off series Better Call Saul.
Since Zafiro is treated as a premium product, it doubtlessly has to be a Tequila made of 100% Blue Weber Agave and certainly not a mixto. The classification "Añejo" indicates that it was aged for a minimum of a year in wooden barrels.
But even though Zafiro Añejo is not a real liquor, there are quite some interesting facts about the fictional brand.
How Añejo Tequila from Zafiro came to life
Zafiro Añejo is a fictitious Tequila brand created by the writers of Breaking Bad, but they didn't plan it that way. At first, the idea was to find a real-life brand for product placement.
But as you can imagine, no established brand was willing to pay for a scene where everyone consuming the liquor drops dead only minutes after.
The crew had to think of something else and come up with Zafiro Añejo. Zafiro is Spanish for "Sapphire" and is a hidden reference to the bright blue meth produced by Walter White aka Heisenberg.
The crew behind the series did a fantastic job designing the fictional brand, and people immediately wanted to buy the premium Añejo Tequila. One of the reasons was the genius bottle design of Zafiro Añejo.
The blue bottle design
The color and the name of the Tequila bottle are both references to the blue meth Heisenberg produces. But the shape of the bottle is certainly inspired by a real-world product.
Comparing it to the bottle design of Hardy Perfection Cognac, you can spot a strong resemblance. The overall shape and the Zafiro Añejo bottle stopper were both inspired by this ultra-premium Cognac brand.
Yet, while Hardy Perfection aimed to mimic flames with their bottle stopper, Zafiro's stopper resembles an agave plant.
Zafiro Tequila Price
One shot of Zafiro Añejo Tequila costs $50. That is the price mentioned in Better Call Saul season 2. Hence, the price for a full bottle should be at least a few hundred Dollars but might be even more.
A shot typically contains 1 to 1.5 oz. Assuming that the bottle contains 750ml, you can get 16 to 25 shots out of it. A quick calculation shows that this results in $833,33 to $1250. But as bars tend to mark up booze heavily, the estimated price would be $400 to $600.
In season 6 of Better Call Saul, the price for a bottle of Zafiro Añejo is confirmed to be $499. -That was what Jimmy would have had to pay for one bottle in a liquor store.
Price-wise, Zafiro Tequila is comparable to Clase Azul Tequila. This real-world premium Tequila brand usually sells for $500 to $600 per 750ml bottle.
Reference of Zafiro in "Breaking Bad"
In Breaking Bad, there's only one scene where Tequila Zafiro Añejo is shown. This scene is from season 4 - Episode 10, when Gustavo Fring, Mike (Ehrmantraut), and Jesse visit the Cartel's hacienda.
The leader of the cartel, Eladio Vuente, spotted the gift box Gus Fring brought with him and found the Zafiro premium Tequila inside. He decided to share it with the rest of the cartel members. Gus also drinks with them but vomits the Tequila shortly after.
Vuente and the other cartel members drop dead only minutes after consumption.
References of Zafiro Añejo in "Better Call Saul"
In Better Call Saul, Zafiro Tequila is mentioned multiple times. And twice they name prices telling how much Zafiro Añejo Tequila costs. In season 2, a shot is $50. In season 6, a bottle costs $499.
Here are all mentions of the Tequila in the series:
- Season 2, Episode 1 - "Switch": Shots of Zafiro Añejo are bought in a bar for $50 per shot.
- Season 3, Episode 9 - "Fall": Jimmy buys an entire bottle to share with Kim.
- Season 4, Episode 1 - "Smoke": After Chuck commits suicide, Kim shares a bottle of the luxury Tequila with Jimmy.
- Season 6, Episode 6 - "Axe and Grind": Jimmy prepares to buy a bottle of Zafiro Añejo for $499. In the end, he leaves the liquor store without actually buying it.
Discussion among Fans
The price of Zafiro Añejo in Better Call Saul doesn't really align with the storyline in Breaking Bad. This is also discussion in many fan communities of both series.
It's highly unlikely that cartel boss Eladio Vuente would be so excited about a Tequila that sells for $499. Don't get me wrong, 500 Dollars is not cheap but not expensive enough to actually impress Vuente.
Assuming that the crew behind both series were inspired by Hardy Perfection Cognac, they should also have aimed at the price of this premium Cognac. -It sells for around $10,000 per 750ml bottle.
The famous bottle stopper
I probably don't have to tell you how famous the fictional Tequila brand is. That massive love from fans has been making high waves, and now Indi design studios have begun producing the famed bottle stopper as custom orders.
But getting one doesn't come cheap. The stopper sells for a whopping $1,795. That gets you a handcrafted, copper-plated bottle stopper made from sterling silver.