LOS PALOMITAS

A paloma is usually tequila, lime and grapefruit soda. It's the drink most people in Mexico actually order, and it survives almost any substitution you throw at it.

Sotol takes it somewhere more floral. We add lavender to the agave syrup to lean into that, and the result is lighter than a tequila paloma without losing any of the citrus.

What you need

• 2 oz Los Magos Sotol Blanco
• .5 oz fresh lime juice
• .5 oz lavender infused agave
• Fever-Tree sparkling grapefruit, to top
• Lime, grapefruit twist and a rosemary sprig

How to make it

1. Add the sotol, lime juice and lavender agave to a glass with ice.
2. Top with sparkling grapefruit.
3. Garnish with lime, a grapefruit twist and a rosemary sprig.

Lavender agave in five minutes

Warm equal parts agave nectar and water until it loosens. Take it off the heat, drop in a tablespoon of dried culinary lavender, and leave it 20 minutes. Strain and refrigerate. It keeps about a month.

Go light. Lavender turns soapy fast if you push it.

Why sotol works here

Grapefruit is bitter and sweet at the same time, and it tends to flatten whatever sits underneath it. Blanco tequila often disappears into a paloma entirely.

Sotol holds its shape. The herbaceous side of our Blanco meets the rosemary and lavender head on, and the black pepper gives the grapefruit something to push against. You can taste the base spirit all the way through, which is the whole point of making it at home.

Questions we get

Can I skip the lavender?
Plain agave works. You'll get a cleaner, more citrus-forward drink.

What's the difference between sotol and tequila?
Tequila comes from blue agave in western Mexico. Sotol comes from the Desert Spoon plant in the north. Sotol runs more herbaceous and less sweet.

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Make it with the bottle it was built for.
Los Magos Sotol Blanco, 750ml. Wild-harvested and triple distilled, with no additives.