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Move over, mezcal—New York is about to get a crash course in sotol, the earthy, complex spirit from northern Mexico that the New Yorker once dubbed “The Next Big Drink.” From October 6–12, Sotol Week will take over the city with cocktail specials, tastings and events designed to spotlight this desert-born distillate and the people behind it.
More than 70 bars and restaurants will feature sotol-based creations throughout the week, from refreshing highballs to smoky stirred sippers. Expect to see Casa Lotos Sotol featured across the city at some of NYC’s most notable drinking destinations like Superbueno, Dante, Saga, the Wall Street Hotel, Cosme, Toloache and El Fish. Each will riff on the spirit’s versatility, from bracingly vegetal martinis to smoky-sweet riffs on classic margs.
The idea for Sotol Week originated when Casa Lotos approached José María “Chema” Dondé Rangel, founder of Panorama Mezcal and Puebla York Week, about creating a festival dedicated to the spirit. Together, they’ve built a first-of-its-kind event meant to introduce sotol to a wider audience and cement its place among the world’s most intriguing spirits.
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The festivities kick off with a distillation demonstration at the Consulate General of Mexico, led by fourth-generation sotolero Gerardo Ruelas. The session will explore how terroir, climate and solar ovens shape Casa Lotos’s flavor profile, from its grassy nose to its subtle, peppery finish. Other events throughout the week include educational panels, culinary collaborations, pop-up tastings and live music celebrating the craft and culture of northern Mexico.
Sotol may be new to some New Yorkers, but it’s far from a newcomer in the spirits world. Made from the wild-harvested Dasylirion plant—also known as desert spoon—it has been distilled in Chihuahua, Durango and Coahuila for centuries. Unlike agave, sotol isn’t cultivated in neat rows; each plant takes well over a decade to mature in the wild, producing a spirit that captures the rugged character of its landscape.
For the curious drinker, Sotol Week offers the perfect introduction: seven days, 70 venues and one distinctly untamed spirit ready for its New York debut.