Move over tequila and mezcal, there’s a new spirit overtaking mixologists’ top spot. Made from Mexico’s desert spoon succulent, sotol brings a clean and bright flavor to drinks whether served neat or mixed into cocktails. Celebrating Tres de Mayo (the sotol-centric precursor to Cinco de Mayo), Casa Lotos brings their signature Sotol Blanco to the Paramount Club on May 3rd for a tasting session. In preparation for the event, here are three things to know about the “agave-adjacent” drink.
It’s clean and bright.
Unlike a smoky mezcal, sotol’s flavor tends more toward the grassy and green. Casa Lotos’ Blanco brings “a tang of green herbs, with hints of pine, cucumber and green peppercorns on the nose,” according to the company. “Its versatility means it can also be used as a fresh take on classic favorites like martinis and margaritas, or enjoyed on its own,” says Co-Founder Wendy Eisenberg. It’s also gluten-free, non-GMO, sustainably made and Kosher.
It’s eco-conscious.
Casa Lotos hand harvests their plants in the wild, leaving the roots intact and allowing them to regenerate, creating a product with the least amount of disruption to the land. Agave-based spirits, in contrast, are harvested by the root, meaning regeneration can take years. The distillers behind the sotol use traditional methods – now combined with sustainable technology like solar power.
It’s created by trained artisans.
“Casa Lotos is a unique spirit whose crisp, bright flavor is the result of fourth-generation sotoleros working in harmony with the natural landscape,” says Eisenberg, who works with the Rueles family in Aldama, Chihuahua. After being roasted in the ground, the plant is pulped, pressed and fermented before being double distilled in a copper pot and then tested for alcohol levels by the master sotoleros.
Join us on May 3rd from 3-6pm in the Game Room to experience Casa Lotos and learn more about sotol.
