Desert Door Explorer Series Gold Dust Texas Sotol

Desert Door Explorer Series Gold Dust Texas Sotol is the rested edition of America's original commercial sotol — an 80 proof (40% ABV) 750mL Texas sotol made from wild-harvested Dasylirion texanum ("desert spoon"), then aged 2 years in virgin Missouri white oak with a medium toast. Desert Door took juice from its original Conservation Series release and gave it the toasted-barrel treatment — toasted oak imparts different character than charred oak, and the result is Gold Dust: roasted nuts and brown sugar on the nose, spice and pepper on the lips fading to caramel with a hint of coconut. A limited edition in the Explorer Series experimental line. Available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.

• Proof / ABV: 80 proof (40% ABV) — 750mL
• Resting: 2 years in virgin Missouri white oak, medium toast (Conservation Series juice)
• Plant: wild-harvested Dasylirion texanum from West Texas (less than 20% of plants per acre taken; root structures left to regenerate)
• Distillation: custom hybrid still — steam-jacketed copper pot feeding a small column still; ~155 proof off the still
• Distillery: Desert Door, Driftwood, Texas — the first commercial sotol producer in the US (fired up fall 2017)

Two Years in Toasted Oak

Desert Door was conceived by Brent Looby, Judson Kauffman, and Ryan Campbell while they were in business school at the University of Texas — a sotol brand built on an 8,000-acre ranch in Terrell County outside Dryden, West Texas. The Explorer Series is where they experiment, and Gold Dust is the 2-year toasted-oak edition: brand copy, quoted verbatim by retailers: "Toasted barrels impart different characteristics than charred barrels." Explore more sotol or see the Desert Door range at Del Mesa.

Tasting Notes

The brand's own words: "We took juice from our original Conservation Series release and aged it for two years in virgin Missouri white oak with a medium toast... Gold Dust offers up roasted nuts and brown sugar on the nose; on the lips there's spice and pepper which fade to caramel with a hint of coconut."

How to Enjoy

Neat in a rocks glass — the toasted-oak character shows best unadorned. The spice-and-caramel profile also suits a simple sotol Old Fashioned.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is sotol the same as tequila?
No — sotol is distilled from the desert spoon plant (Dasylirion), not agave, and has no relation to tequila beyond both being Mexican-heritage spirits. (Desert Door's is made in Texas.)

Is Gold Dust aged?
Yes — 2 years in virgin Missouri white oak with a medium toast, using juice from the original Conservation Series release. Toasted, not charred, oak.

How is sotol made?
Desert Door shaves the leaves from wild desert-spoon hearts, cooks the cores, presses the juice, ferments about five days on a proprietary yeast, and distills in a custom hybrid copper still.

West Texas in a glass, rested in toasted oak — order Desert Door Gold Dust Sotol from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.