A new premium tequila brand is making its opening move in the on-premise channel. Playa Dia, founded by Rachel Forbes and Dennis Cisterna and based in Newport Beach, California, launched its Blanco expression in September 2026 with a direct play for restaurant and hotel back-bars across Orange County — a market Forbes is working personally — alongside e-commerce delivery covering 45 states from day one.
Product & Positioning
Playa Dia Blanco is distilled in Jalisco, Mexico from 100% Blue Weber Agave, bottled at 40% ABV, and uses a three-ingredient mash bill: agave, water, and yeast. The brand positions the liquid around what it calls a ZERO BURN profile — a descriptor aimed at both loyal tequila drinkers and the larger off-premise and on-premise pool of consumers who cite harshness as a barrier to category trial. For foodservice operators, that positioning frames Playa Dia as a crossover SKU capable of driving daypart volume in cocktail programs that otherwise struggle to convert spirit-skeptical guests.
"Why does tequila have to burn? It doesn't," said Rachel Forbes, Founder and CEO. "I wanted Playa Dia to be the tequila you pour for someone who already loves tequila, and for the person who says they don't drink it because of the burn."
On-Premise Strategy
The brand's hospitality-first rollout reflects a wider trade reality: premium and ultra-premium tequila remains one of the fastest-growing spirits segments, with on-premise velocity driving trial that converts to retail and e-commerce repurchase. Craft and founder-led tequila brands have found particular traction in resort, coastal, and lifestyle-oriented hotel food-and-beverage programs, where beverage directors increasingly seek labels that carry visual and narrative weight at the table.
Playa Dia's signature packaging — an all-glass seashell bottle in white with turquoise rope detailing — is engineered for shelf presence and table display. The brand also offers a luxury keepsake gift box, a SKU configuration well suited to hotel minibar programs, celebratory dining occasions, and resort retail. Forbes has described the brand as a "world, not a single product," extending the lifestyle positioning into a merchandise line that includes apparel, hats, tote bags, and pet accessories — ancillary categories that reinforce brand identity at resort and hospitality retail points of sale.
Distribution Outlook
The California launch, concentrated in Orange County, gives Playa Dia a geographically dense test market with strong hospitality density — the region hosts a significant concentration of luxury hotels, coastal dining concepts, and independent fine-dining operators that serve as natural proving grounds for premium spirits programs. Broader California retail distribution and additional state-by-state on-premise expansion have not been detailed in the brand's initial rollout materials.
For buyers and beverage directors evaluating the brand, the direct-to-consumer infrastructure covering 45 states signals that Playa Dia is building a dual-channel model from the outset — a structure increasingly common among founder-led spirits startups that need e-commerce velocity to demonstrate demand to wholesale distributors before securing full three-tier placement. The brand is founder-owned and woman-led through Reign Global Investments, LLC.
Playa Dia enters a crowded but still-expanding premium tequila set. Operators navigating spirits program decisions and distributors tracking emerging on-premise brands will find the ZERO BURN positioning and coastal-hospitality aesthetic relevant as the category continues to outpace most other spirits segments in both on- and off-premise volume.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
