Desert Door Texas Sotol Oak Aged

Rating: 14/23 E: Surprisingly dark! Almost like a bourbon. N: Huh, this is very different from the unaged Desert Door Original's nose, and it isn't at all like what I expected. What hits me first is tons of turmeric, but it's still kind of sweet. Super dusty. With some vanilla. It opens up into more of a mellow tobacco (though not stale like in the unaged Desert Door). As I get through that, something bourbony with cinnamon and a creaminess comes out. There's a hint of the Garrison Brothers oversteeped-yet-sweet one-note woodiness. I even get a hint of fruit - maybe apples and bananas - if I dig hard enough. This is a unique and interesting nose, but it's not as challenging as the unaged Desert Door, which, frankly, I prefer in this case. P: Again, the palate is lighter with more more mineral and harshness than the nose, unfortunately. Quite thin. There's actually quite a bit going on here though and it coheres a lot better than the unaged Desert Door. Immediately, I'm not so impressed as the harsh spiciness hits. It carries some bitter wood that definitely tastes like chips left in the spirit for too long, but there's also some interesting spices. I get turmeric, vanilla, a bit of cinnamon, and maybe a dash of nutmeg. And there's a weird sweetness to the spices, sort of like the one that really threw me for a loop in Yuu Baal Pechuga. Eventually, the fruits actually open up. I do get some vegetable in here, but it's more on the dry, herbal side, not rotting at all. I certainly get banana, and I also get apple. There's even a faint hint of chocolate in Garrison Brothers. I can't say that I'm a big fan of most of this palate, but it mellows out as it goes on and (surprisingly) gets richer and more interesting too. F: This is maybe the high point. The richness of the sweet spices, vanilla, and bit of fruit lingers. Wafts of turmeric come through, but they certainly aren't overwhelming. There's some tobacco here and long into the finish it becomes kind of stale, but maybe that is just fitting? I'm not really sure to what extent this benefits from the higher proof than Desert Door Original. It's richer at times, but it isn't fuller and it's still pretty thin on the palate. The complexity is pretty solid though with an interesting profile that I generally like well enough and flavors that actually cohere. Desert Door Original is certainly more complex, but not in a way that is really good. This really benefits from that Texas bourbon character - very fitting! I think that the higher proof must be to compensate for some loss in impact from the aging though because I could not have told you that this was higher proof than the unaged Desert Door (bottled at 40%). Both could benefit from a higher bottling proof. I'm looking in the 12 to 15 range for this one, with 12 and 15 both being unlikely. I'm going with 14 because of the nice complexity and interesting flavor. I might buy this for the right price. If only it were a bit less harsh and thin.

An intense, 'Sotol by Desert Door distillery in Driftwood, Texas produced with Dasylirion Texanum, or green desert spoon, cooked in a large custom steamer. Next, the plants are machine-shredded & then fermented in stainless steel tanks for 5 days using an organic, proprietary yeast. The resulting mash is distilled in their custom-build still. The spirit is then aged in oak barrels before being adjusted to 50% ABV using purified water before being bottled. It has an herbaceous & spicy birth; while a creamy life adds notes of agave, grass, lime, pink peppercorn, sage, hints of oak, vanilla, thyme, hyssop, toffee & earth; that leads to a bold death by drowning in pepper. September / October 2022

Tried neat in the pool with @Looneyhead The legs it leaves on the glass is beautiful. On the nares I get spice with notes of vanilla, strong cedar, mint caramel, lime, Himalayan salt. First sip is initially hot and then mellows out. I get notes of wood, mint, vanilla, & toast Smelling the empty glass I get flowers, oak, and strong vanilla.

Full-bodied, dry, smoky, and grassy. Meanwhile, not bitter or astringent. Can't think of a spirit that evokes The Desert more than this, so the branding is plenty appropriate. The oak-aging mellows and sweetens it seemingly just the right amount. This is my first sotol, so I have no basis for comparison, but it is very compelling.

Lovely aroma of caramel, vanilla, black pepper, spicy sotol, grape, mint, lemon, brine, grass and a big dose of cedar. Woody and spicy on the palate, cedar, pepper, caramel apple, cinnamon and a hint of chocolate. A little spice at the finish. Utterly aromatic and complex. Delicious.

A unique combination of flavors where the Carmel sweet tones are not the stand out flavor. Instead, it has more of a pine needle/ tea character changing the landscape for what a herbal note can be while adding those sweeter flavors along for the ride.