818 And Rao's Pasta Alla Tequila Kit Review: A Boozy Delight Straight From Nonna's Kitchen

If you have ever wondered what could be better than a steaming bowl of artisanal pasta with a slow-cooked sauce made from the finest tomatoes, Rao's Homemade and 818 Tequila have the answer for you. The powerhouse duo have joined forces to create a limited-edition Pasta Alla Tequila kit that will knock your socks off.

Each kit includes a bottle of 818 Tequila Blanco, a jar of Rao's Homemade Marinara Sauce, two bags of 818 custom-shaped pasta, a custom waffle dish towel, and a homemade recipe card for a dynamite dish that fuses the subtle agave, citrus, and vanilla notes of the tequila with the rich tomato sauce for a creamy, savory sauce that will satisfy even the most discriminating palate. This kit is sold exclusively on the 818 Tequila website and is available for $50, plus tax and shipping, while supplies last.

I was fortunate enough to obtain one of these kits and evaluate it. I cooked up a batch of the pasta alla tequila, assessing it based on aroma, texture, flavor, and overall appeal. Read on for the full scoop and to see if you should hop on over to 818's website and secure one of these kits to give to a food-loving friend or relative for their next special occasion celebration.

Some recommendations are based on first-hand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer/distributor/etc.

Before even talking about the recipe, I'd be remiss in not mentioning the packaging of this kit. From the get-go, this kit is visually appealing. The box itself is a sturdy, decorative one that has a magnetic lid — it's destined to become a container for something else in my life because it is a fabulous box. The dish towel is soft and adorned with a decorative print depicting the contents of the kit. The recipe card looks handwritten by an Italian nonna and rests in a receptacle built into the lid of the box.

The pasta noodles are precious and fun, designed to look like the numbers 8 and 1 and a bottle of tequila. The recipe itself is simple. It combines the sauce with some of the 818 tequila, cream, parmesan cheese, and red pepper flakes if desired. Once cooked, it gets served over the pasta for a dish that comes together in just about 10 minutes.

This sauce is somewhat reminiscent of a penne alla vodka in terms of its saffron color and velvety texture, but that's where the similarities end. The aroma is distinct, with vanilla and citrus notes from the tequila shining through. The flavor of this sauce is nutty, slightly sweet, and a bit floral, with a distinctive umami-rich aftertaste that almost has a meatiness to it. The pasta itself has a marvelous al dente texture and pairs perfectly with the sauce. I'd give this dish an A+ grade.

While precise nutritional information for this recipe is not included, the dish contains a jar of sauce, ½ cup of tequila, and one bag of pasta. To the best of my determination, this recipe is intended to feed a party of seven. For those with heartier appetites, it would likely only feed four to six.

Rao's Homemade Marinara contains tomatoes, olive oil, onions, salt, garlic, basil, pepper, and oregano. One jar of this sauce has seven servings, each with 100 calories, 7 grams of fat, 420 milligrams of sodium, 6 grams total of carbohydrates, 4 grams of sugar, and 2 grams of protein per serving.

The pasta is made from enriched durum semolina flour, containing niacin, riboflavin, thiamin, iron, and folic acid. It also contains spinach powder. A single bag has seven servings, each containing 200 calories, 0.5 grams of fat, 5 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of sugar, and 7 grams of protein per serving. Allergens listed include wheat, though when the recipe is made as written, dairy is added.

818 Tequila is made from mature blue agave sourced from the Jalisco region of Mexico. The agave is slow-cooked for over 30 hours before the extracted juices are fermented for more than 70 hours. The tequila is then distilled twice until it contains 40% ABV. Though the sauce is boiled, there is a significant amount of tequila in this dish, which may make it unsuitable for some audiences.

Overall, I was highly impressed with this mash-up of brands. Quite often, when two brands join forces to develop a new product that fuses them, the result feels forced and like it doesn't effectively showcase each uniquely, nor does it adequately blend the two to create something new and improved. That is not the case here. A lot of thought, creativity, and product development went into this Pasta Alla Tequila kit by the folks at Rao's Homemade and 818 Tequila, and it shows. From the packaging to the ingredients to the quality of the recipe, this is a home run.

While I initially thought that the price was a little high, if you think about what you are getting and break it down, it is actually quite reasonable. Not only are you getting a full meal for a party of four to eight, depending upon appetites, but there is also an extra bag of pasta for use at a later date, the remaining bottle of tequila, the recipe, the dish towel, and the box, which you will definitely not want to recycle. If you have a pasta-loving tequila enthusiast in your circle of friends and family, they would love to receive this as a gift.