🥃 Sotol

Sotol is a Mexican spirit made from plants of the genus Dasylirion (local names sotol and cerecé), not from agave. Since 2002 it has been a designation of origin for the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila and Durango; the Mexican standard NOM-159-SCFI-2004 requires a strength of 35–55% ABV and allows up to 49% sugars from other sources.

The declaration protecting the name was signed by the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property on 13 June 2002, and the official gazette published it on 8 August 2002. The holder of the designation is the Mexican state. Chihuahua filed first; Coahuila joined on 14 January and Durango on 23 January 2002. The declaration covers all municipalities of the three states.

Under the standard, the raw material is the piña, the heart of the mature Dasylirion plant. It is cooked or hydrolyzed, the must is fermented, distilled and rectified; cold blending is forbidden. The category «Sotol 100% puro» has no outside sugars, while plain «Sotol» may contain them up to 49%. Methanol is allowed up to 300 mg per 100 ml of pure alcohol, additives no more than 1% by weight.

The standard knows four types: blanco; joven (oro), blanco blended with aged; reposado, at least two months in wooden containers (oak, chestnut, beech, ash, acacia); and añejo, at least a year in containers of up to 210 l. The 2002 declaration mentions sotol residues in the cave Cueva de la Olla (1060–1205) and traces of ovens for it in Paquimé.

Why this matters to you. «Sotol 100% puro» means all the sugars come from Dasylirion; without that mark, up to 49% of the sugars may be other. Sotol is neither mezcal nor tequila: a different plant and a different designation. Look at the type (blanco, reposado, añejo) and the strength of 35–55% ABV. WHO reminds us: there is no safe dose of alcohol.