New Driftwood Distillery Wants to Bring Back Sotol

A new distillery is coming to Driftwood in the form of Desert Door, which makes sotol. The spirit is made from Texas-grown sotol (the plant), also known as the Desert Spoon plant. The distillery will open to the public on Thursday, November 16 at 211 Darden Hill Road.

Sotol is currently made by a handful of producers in Mexico, mostly in the states of Chihuahua, Durango, and Coahuila, though per a press release, Desert Door claims the first sotol was made by Native Americans in Texas 7,000 years ago. The taste of the spirit is somewhat of a cross between tequila and mezcal, with herbaceous notes and a hint of smoke.

The product will be available only at the distillery to start, with plans for restaurant distribution. The 6,500 square foot distillery will have craft cocktails with the spirit and curated goods in a desert-modern tasting room.

Desert Door offers two varieties of the spirit: a 40% ABV Desert Door Texas Sotol and a 100-proof Desert Door Oak-Aged Sotol. Desert Door’s founders Judson Kauffman, Ryan Campbell, and Brent Looby, are all former service members of the U.S. military who met during the MBA program at the University of Texas McCombs School of Business.

• Desert Door [Official]
• Desert Door [Facebook]
• Desert Door [Instagram]