Netflix The Taco Chronicles Accepts Honoree Taste Award

Netflix The Taco Chronicles Accepts Honoree Taste Award, presented for the 12th Annual TASTE AWARDS.

Often called “The Oscars of Food, Fashion and Lifestyle Media,” the TASTE AWARDS in Hollywood/Beverly Hills are the premier awards celebrating the year’s best in Food, Fashion, Health, Travel, and Lifestyle programs in Film, Television, Online & Streaming Video, Podcasts, Radio and Photography.

The Awards have included appearances by stars, celebrities, producers and executives from networks and platforms such as the Food Network, the Style Network, Bravo, the Cooking Channel, Sony Pictures, DreamWorks, TLC, Discovery, Lifetime, E! Entertainment Television, PBS, APT, Create TV, NBC, ABC, the CW, HGTV, the Travel Channel, HD Net, Hulu, YouTube, Vimeo, Vice, LiveWell Network, Esquire Network, Bio/FYI Channel, iHeart Radio, HBO, MyxTV, Small Screen Network, StyleHaul, PTA, Zagat, Mode Media, WatchMojo, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Lifetime Network, Buzzed, Vox Media, and more.

www.TheTasteAwards.com

Viva Tequila Festival Mexico Experience Tour Honored by the TASTE AWARDS

Atlanta’s Viva Tequila Festival was honored at this year’s TASTE AWARDS (aka, the TASTY Awards). Often called the “Oscars of Food, Fashion and Lifestyle Media,” this edition of the Taste Awards highlighted Viva Tequila Mexico Experience under the category of OUTSTANDING CULINARY & TRAVEL EXPERIENCE. This year, as for many awards shows, the Taste Awards had a virtual broadcast that reached viewers across the globe, from Japan and South Africa to England, Poland and Italy, and from New Zealand to Mexico, Brazil and Argentina.

Hosted by wine, beer and spirits purveyor Juan Bonilla, dubbed “Mr. Tequila,” the Viva Tequila Festival Mexico Experience tour takes participants on an exclusive trip down the historic timeline of Mexico’s Tequila Trail, providing in-depth understanding of the different regions that cultivate Tequila, the history of this iconic Mexican spirit and its importance in local, national and international economies.

The Viva Tequila Festival Mexico Experience tour visits several cities, including Tlaquepaque, Tequila, Atotonilco and Guadalajara to provide a local perspective of the manufacturing of Tequila. Participants are able to mingle with locals and admire and shop for unique Mexican works of art, both folk and fine, all while sipping limited edition craft Tequilas from distilleries that embody traditional to modern styles of manufacturing.

Highlights includes visits to the Fortaleza and Don Nacho craft distilleries as well as hacienda of José Cuervo, where participants bottle their own Reserva de la Familia, and enjoy a tasting in the property’s private cellar and then dinner at the Tienda de Raya, both opened exclusively for Viva Tequila Festival.

Tour participants are treated to stays in centuries-old haciendas that were once home to some of Mexico’s wealthiest people. They can enjoy a morning horseback ride at the historic, 17th century Hacienda Labor de Rivera or disconnect and relax with a spa treatment at Hacienda El Carmen Hotel & Spa.

Other winners at this year’s Taste Awards included recipients of the new ANDREW ZIMMERN DISCOVERY AWARD. This award honors the mission to discover new cultures, flavors or talent. The inaugural honorees of this new award are noted chefs Andrew Zimmern and Tyler Florence.

Other well-known personalities who won or were honored at the Taste Awards include Ming Tsai, Selena Gomez, Idris Elba, Dylan Dreyer, Chef John Folse and Lidi Bastianich, along with Bravo’s Top Chef, America’s Test Kitchen, NHK, the Africa Channel and New Soul Kitchen.

The Taste Awards have included appearances by stars, celebrities, producers and executives from networks and platforms such as the Food Network, the Style Network, Bravo, the Cooking Channel, TLC, Discovery, Lifetime, E! Entertainment Television, PBS, Create TV, APT, NBC, ABC, the CW, HGTV, the Travel Channel, HD Net, Hulu, YouTube, Dreamworks, Esquire Network, FYI Network, The History Channel, Bio, iHeart Radio, Sony Pictures, APT, Myx TV, Netflix, Amazon Prime and more. See them at www.TheTasteAwards.com.


For more information on Viva Tequila Festival’s tours, visit www.vivatequilafestival.com.

Madre Mezcal Secures $3 Million Series A Round to Grow Top Mezcal Brand

Madre Mezcal, one of the fastest growing mezcal brands in America, recently raised $3,000,000 to apply to the brand’s growth strategy to new products and new markets. The Series A round was led by Room 9, a NYC-based venture capital studio that specializes in investing in the consumer sector.

Amid an increasingly competitive mezcal category, Madre has found success through a grassroots strategy aimed at introducing new consumers to the mezcal category. With the additional funding, Madre is being poised to expand its word-of-mouth campaign, largely driven by in-person activations and online engagement. The priorities of the funded Madre brand will be to expand its product range to target new consumption occasions, while also expanding its distribution and marketing efforts in new countries, US states, and online.

Beyond a great-tasting, easy-to-drink mezcal, Madre’s success has been a result of working closely with the communities that have driven word-of-mouth for the brand,” says Chris Stephenson, CEO of Madre. “For us to expand while continuing this successful path, we needed a partner that recognizes the cultural authenticity that fuels our approach. With Room 9, we’ve found a partner that understands the growth opportunities through product, geography and digital expansion, and encourages the brand development through cultural engagement.”

Room 9 is an early-stage venture capital studio whose selective portfolio spans across the consumer, food, beverage and technology sectors and includes Jot Coffee, Los Sundays Tequila and Cleancult. Room 9 Founder, Anish Bhatia previously led fundraising efforts for Los Sundays, an award-winning tequila brand based out of Orange County, CA, and currently sits on their Advisory Board.

About Madre
Distilled with both the newcomer and the seasoned consumer in mind, Madre is a ‘gateway mezcal that offers beautifully well-balanced flavor with smooth finish. With less smoke than most mezcals, Madre opens palates to a new market of consumers thanks to its signature blend of espadin and cuishe. Madre is a certified artisanal product from Mexico, hand made by mezcaleros in open air palanques located in the rural hills of Oaxaca. Using local water and natural airborne yeast, Madre’s flavor is directly tied to the earth it comes from. https://www.madremezcal.com/

About Room 9
Room Nine is not your typical early-stage VC. Our Creative Agency + Venture Studio model is for the misfits who create, deviants who innovate and dreamers who dare tell their stories. Our generation craves authenticity more than ever and at Room Nine we celebrate their fearless pursuit of design and culture. Room Nine’s portfolio spans across consumer, food, beverage and technology sectors. Our mission is to discover, partner with and fund authentic brands and founders.

Places to Work Abroad or Retire with a Second Passport

There’s been a lot of movement among people looking at places to work or retire abroad, especially since many now have the option to work from anywhere.

According to International Living, there are several destinations for sourcing a second passport and residence quickly, and without buying or inheriting it. They say that Americans exploring their move-out-of-the-U.S have plenty of places around the world that only take 2-5 years to gain citizenship-by-naturalization, and it’s perfectly legal for Americans to hold dual-citizenship.

HOW IT WORKS

Second passports and residence in other countries have long appealed to Americans interested in greater flexibility in their travels and investments,” says Jeff D. Opdyke, editor of The Savvy Retiree, a publication of International Living. “These days, that interest is rising—sharply—with more people seeking an ‘escape plan’ should the U.S. no longer suit them in the years to come, whether that be for political, economic, or social reasons.”

It’s possible to effectively buy a passport by investing in certain countries—but to do so typically requires a minimum of $100,000. It’s possible to gain citizenship (and a passport) through family heritage, too. But the genealogy route is hit or miss, depending on the country.

There is, however, a less-costly, more-organic, nearly assured path: Move somewhere and gain citizenship—and a passport—via the naturalization process,” Opdyke says, “and that’s not as difficult as it might sound.

While lots of countries require that you live within their borders for a decade or longer before you can apply for citizenship, several impose a much-shorter timeline of between two and five years. And as a U.S. expat who’s lived in Prague now for nearly two years, I can tell you those years fly by quickly.”

It’s legal for U.S. citizens to hold dual citizenship (and two—or more—passports), which means one needn’t give up their U.S. citizenship to avail themselves of the benefits a second citizenship can provide.

Right now, for instance, a U.S. passport isn’t opening many doors if you’re traveling from the States, but if you had a second passport, you could go on that,” Opdyke says. “It can simply open doors—and provide options not only for greater movement, but for investments, and overseas living as well.”

For folks considering securing citizenship and a second passport, the International Living report explores several countries where the process of citizenship-by-naturalization is relatively quick:


Argentina: 2 Years

Two short years in one of the world’s truly beautiful countries and you can apply for citizenship and, thus, an Argentine passport—the 19th most-powerful passport on the planet in that it gives you access to 170 countries without needing a visa.

There are definitive requirements for Argentina:

• Proof that you’ve lived continuously in Argentina for two years.
• Be over 18 years old.
• Proof of adequate income or employment.
• Passport.
• A DNI card—an Argentine residence permit.
• Proof of no serious criminal record.

Argentina seemingly has a financial crisis du jour. Still, if one’s life is denominated in dollars, their lifestyle in the land of tango will be pretty sweet. Argentina allows you to hold dual nationality as an American.

Peru: 2 Years*

The asterisk here ties to Peru’s requirement that a non-Peruvian can apply for citizenship two years after acquiring residence in the country. That’s not hard; with the correct documents folks can apply for Peruvian residence while visiting on a tourist visa. But it could take several months to complete the residence process.

Once you’ve been a resident for two years, citizenship can be applied for. The necessary documents are similar to those in Argentina, but there are also requirements:

• Write an application to the president of Peru.
• Prove you’re healthy.
• Can communicate in Spanish, and pass an exam about Peruvian history, culture, and geography.

Ecuador, Honduras, Poland, Paraguay: 3 Years

Ecuador demands three continuous years, and if there is an interruption of more than 90 days, folks have to start over.

Honduras shortens the requirement to two years if you are Ibero-American (from a Spanish or Portuguese-speaking country).

Poland is interesting because it’s a European Union member, meaning this is the quickest path to an EU passport. One will also need proof of a stable source of income, such as Social Security or a pension. Perhaps the hardest requirement: proof—by way of official certificate—that you can speak Polish, not one of the world’s easiest languages for native English speakers.

Paraguay is straightforward: Live there for three years as an upstanding citizen.

Brazil: 4 Years

Very much like Paraguay in how easy it is. Four years of continuous residence in the country, command of Portuguese, and no criminal record.

5 Years

Australia, Barbados, Belize, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Ireland, Jamaica, Latvia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Panama, Singapore, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Uruguay: 5 years

This is not a complete list of the five-year countries. Quite a few others impose requirements that make them less appealing (Indonesia and Japan require that you relinquish your U.S. nationality), or they’re countries most won’t rush to, such as Iran, Congo, or Afghanistan.

Most of these countries are straightforward: five years of continuous residence.

Finland requires folks speak Finnish or Swedish, the Netherlands requires applicants be conversant in Dutch, and Thailand demands folks speak Thai.

Panama wants to know you can speak Spanish and have a basic understanding of Panamanian history, geography, and politics.

Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel & Romantic Getaway Reopens to Guests with Revised Safety Protocols

One of our favorite upscale spots in Puerto Vallarta, the Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel, is available for private stays in comfort.

With Puerto Vallarta entering a new Phase of its economic and tourist reactivation and the reopening of its beaches, Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel & Romantic Getaway has reopened its doors, while adopting new hygiene and safety protocols to ensure safe spaces and experiences for its guests.

The state of Jalisco, and Puerto Vallarta along with it, was recently recognized with the “Safe Travels” stamp from the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). The specially designed stamp allows travelers across the globe to identify governments and companies that have adopted world-class hygiene and sanitation standards so that consumers can experience “Safe Travels.”

Beaches located in front of Puerto Vallarta’s hotels are open to visitors, and hotels are now authorized to operate with controlled capacity. Hotel swimming pools, beach clubs and restaurants are permitted to open, but hotel gyms and spas will remain closed.

Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel & Romantic Getaway, as part of Buenaventura Hotel Group, has developed and implemented safety and hygiene protocols pointing out the five directives under which the protocol was created —  “HOGAR,” which stands for “HOME” in Spanish — to make you feel as safe as in your home:

  1. Hygiene & Disinfection
  2. Order & Control
  3. Guarantee of Everyone’s Well-being
  4. Accommodations and Social Distancing
  5. Responsibility

The following are some of the practices that will be implemented as part of this “new normal,” including investments in specialized equipment for disinfection, washing, rinsing and drying accessories in rooms and kitchens. There is also new equipment and procedures in place for disinfecting footwear, suitcases, bags and strollers upon guest arrival. Frequent cleaning and filter replacement of cooling systems and swimming pools will be strictly supervised.

As for customer service, social distancing of 6 feet between individuals in waiting spaces — such as check-in / check-out, access to bars and restaurants, and lounge areas, among others — will be maintained. Specific personnel for maid and butler service will be assigned to each floor and reservations at specialty restaurants will be suggested.

Antibacterial gel dispensers have been placed in common areas. To respect minimum social distancing of 6 feet, furniture has been relocated, thus reducing restaurant capacity, with a maximum of six diners per table. The distribution of lounge and beach chairs will respect social distancing and the allocation of rooms will be alternated, maintaining as much distance as possible between designated rooms. The constant use of airway protectors for all guests will be suggested and a personal protection kit for each guest will be included in the room amenities.

These safety and hygiene protocols follow the recommendations of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO); the World Health Organization (WHO); and federal, state and municipal government guidelines, as well as the criteria and contributions of Puerto Vallarta’s Hotel Association for the reactivation of economic and tourism activity.

With these actions, Buenaventura Hotel Group and Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel & Romantic Getaway aim to provide safe spaces for guests, suppliers, collaborators and, in general, society at large, while generating experiences of leisure, fun and comfort through products and services with quality and warmth, placing visitor well-being first.

For more information visit,
Villa Premiere Boutique Hotel & Romantic Getaway

www.premiereonline.com.mx
Boutique Hotel, Adults – Only