tequila vs John Barleycorn

tequila and John Barleycorn both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
tequila	Yes	No	No	No
John Barleycorn	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, John Barleycorn is a hypernym of tequila; that is, John Barleycorn is a word with a broader meaning than tequila:

tequila: Mexican liquor made from fermented juices of an agave plant
John Barleycorn: an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented

Other hypernyms of tequila include booze, hard drink, hard liquor, liquor, spirits, strong drink.

tequila (noun)	John Barleycorn (noun)
Mexican liquor made from fermented juices of an agave plant	an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented