From Juan Pablo Carvajal, co-founder.
Almost nobody ages sotol longer than what is needed.
Aging is uncommon in this industry. The desert spoon plant already takes fifteen years to be worth harvesting, so asking anyone to wait another six on top of that is a hard sell.
We had six barrels resting, distilled from the late Don Celso. After the long wait, we finally pulled them down. I was amazed at how well the sotol had held up, and what the barrel had done to it.
The aging effect
Everything you get in the Los Magos Blanco is still there – the minerality from the desert, the herbal notes off the grassland, and that pine freshness and earthiness that comes down from the mountains.
Then the barrel adds its own layer on top. Vanilla and oak, with a little citrus coming through from the tequila that was resting in there before we started the process.
The result is more complex and more layered than anything we bottle. Well rounded, and built for sipping. That's a rare thing to find in Chihuahua.
A legacy to remember
The Los Magos 6-Year Reserva experiment worked beautifully.
The man who filled them was Don Celso Jaquez, a fifth-generation sotolero who spent his life going back and forth across the border to learn from his grandfather. He passed away in 2018, leaving this as his legacy. His story is worth its own telling, and we've written it down.
See it for yourself
I filmed a short video talking about this process below.
I believe we have something special in those barrels. It's delicious. Go find one and try it before they're gone for good.
Shop the 6 Year Reserva →
$215. 42% alcohol by volume, 84 proof. Roughly 200 bottles remain.