What’s shakin, cocktail fans?
Welcome to Episode 172 of The Modern Bar Cart Podcast! I’m your host, Modern Bar Cart CEO, Eric Kozlik.
Thanks for joining us for another interview episode, where we track down the best and brightest minds in the spirits and cocktail world so that we can share their secrets with you.
This time around, I have the great pleasure of interviewing Bertha González Nieves, founder of Casa Dragones Tequila. She’s the co-founder and CEO of Casa Dragones Tequila, a brand that’s focused on creating delicious, small batch Tequila and leading the charge when it comes to innovation in the agave spirits category. In this delicious interview and spirits tasting, some of the topics we discuss include:
How Bertha came to small batch Tequila by way of a company we’ve all heard of: Groupo Jose Cuervo. She talks about her time working with the one of the world’s largest purveyors of agave spirits and how it launched her into her current venture.
What it means to be certified as a “Maestra Tequilera,” and why this trade certification is particularly special in Bertha’s case.
Then, to my great delight, we jump right into the Casa Dragones portfolio. The marks that we taste through, in order, are their Blanco Tequila, their innovative Joven expression, and then finally their Barrel Blend. Of course, I provide nosing and tasting notes, but we also get pretty granular speaking about each spirit.
We cover the mineral profile of the Mexican Trans-Volcanic Belt, the process of blending aged and un-aged agave distillates to create a new product altogether, and even the art of selecting barrels using Sessile oak (which is different from traditional Limousin French oak).
Some of the things I really enjoy about Bertha are her passion for the agave spirits community at large and her respect for that balance that we always seem to come back to when we talk about Mezcal and Tequila: the respect for tradition that must be weighed against the natural (and in my opinion valuable) impulse to innovate.
I spend probably more time in the Mezcal space than the Tequila world, but I’ve had my fair share of Tequilas. Without a doubt, the Casa Dragones lineup is one of the most compelling trios of agave spirits to reside under one roof. There are some truly special flavors in these bottles, so if you’re looking for that special bottle as a holiday gift or as a way to really treat yourself, I’d certainly recommend upgrading your bar to include Casa Dragones tequila.
With that, please enjoy this fun and flavorful conversation with Bertha González Nieves of Casa Dragones Tequila.
This episode’s featured cocktail is the Micheloma. To make it, you’ll need:
1½ oz. Tequila Casa Dragones Blanco
¾ oz. Cynar
½ oz. grapefruit juice
4-6 oz of Lager
In a cocktail shaker, combine the blanco tequila, Cynar, and grapefruit juice. Shake vigorously for about 15 seconds until the ingredients are properly mixed and diluted. Then strain into a pint or highball glass with a salted rim, top with about half a bottle of your favorite Mexican lager, and enjoy.
This cocktail was developed by bartender Pablo Pasti at the bar Licorería Limantour in Mexico City, and in case you’re not familiar with this mashup, it’s basically a funky, herbal cross between a Michelada and a Paloma. The Paloma, of course, is a combination of Grapefruit soda, and the Michelada is a beertail that inhabits the Bloody Mary universe. Here’s why I think this is such a savvy spinoff of both these cocktails:
First, we have Cynar coming out of left field. It’s not in either the Paloma or the Michelada. Not even a little. But I think what it’s doing here is saying, “hey, you’re missing some sugar from that grapefruit soda, so I’m gonna bring some sweetness to the game, but it’s going to be balanced by vegetal, herbal bitterness and complexity. Also, if we’re taking the tomato juice out of the Michelada, I think it’s only fitting that we have some vegetable matter in there courtesy of the artichoke in the Cynar.
Second, we need to keep in mind that beertails act different than cocktails – for the most part. But if you’ve ever done that thing where you’ve squeezed an orange slice into your favorite German Hefeweizen, I don’t think it’s a stretch to dump some grapefruit juice into your Mexican lager. It makes complete sense to my palate.
So, now that you’ve got a delicious fusion drink to make for your next brunch date, let’s turn our attention back to the interview.
Bertha González Nieves discovered her love for the spirits world when, at age 22, she was selected to represent Mexico in a television program ran by the Japanese government. It was through this opportunity that Bertha realized the incredible way tequila embodied Mexico as the social fabric, the culture, and the life. She fell in love with the craft, deciding then and there that she wanted to dedicate her career to the tequila industry.
Looking for a way to get her foot in the door, Bertha landed a job with the Beckmann family, owners of Grupo Cuervo. For more than a decade she engaged with the Jose Cuervo brand, maintaining five different positions as she learned the foundation of the breadth and what could be done in the tequila category. After her 10th year, she felt the tug of the entrepreneurial spirit urging her to break away from Gupo Cuervo and create her own company. Thus, in 2008, Casa Dragones was born.
The first bottle brought to market was the “Casa Dragones Joven.” This spirit exists to prove that tequila can compete with other sipping spirits like cognac and whiskey, and can also pair well with dishes outside of Mexican cuisine. French, Italian, and Japanese foods are now viable contenders to pair with tequila thanks to the Joven. By pioneering this new space, Bertha hopes to push the tequila production conversation forward, allowing others to follow in her contemporary footsteps.
Bertha accredits the beautiful quality of her liquor to sourcing, cultivation, and water. There are five states where you can harvest blue weber agave in Mexico: Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, Guanajuanto, and Tamaulipas. Casa Dragones is focused in Tequila, Jalisco where the Tequila Volcano causes the soil to be semi-arid and semi-humid, filled with obsidian rock, and volcanic matter. Every bottle of Casa Dragones is 40% tequila 60% water. Using natural aquifers straight from the volcano, Bertha and her team are able to tweak the water, giving it the right mineral profile to harmonize their tequila. This culmination of details is what maintains the premium status of Casa Dragrones’.
The demand for a new tequila arose once consumers started looking for a bottle with more flexibility. The Joven is not meant to be served on the rocks, kept in the freezer, or made into a margarita. This is where inspiration for the “Blanco” bottle arose. The Blanco expression celebrates the agave in a herbaceous, green, and pure tribute. This liquor is minimal, yet bursting with character. When creating the Blanco, Bertha hoped to create a tequila that will have the same relationship with chefs as it does with mixologists. A liquor that can hold its own meat and also perform well in a signature cocktail.
The final bottle created by Casa Dragones is the 3rd barrel aged expression. This tequila is known as the “Añejo.” After extensive traveling, Bertha and her team discovered a soulful wood in Bordeaux, France. By combining that with an American oak from Pennsylvania, Casa Dragones was able to achieve a dry, complex, and beautiful result of an aged tequila. The wood undergoes a char treatment, but the color of the Añejo is a natural reaction that occurs within the bounds of the barrel.
While nosing the Joven, incredible grassy tones and fruity notes are identified, almost reminisce of fermented cane. The deep green nose can be attributed to the floral and citrus in the blanco tequila balanced with the sweetness and spice of the aged. This is a love affair of the two styles, where neither is overwhelming the overall experience.
When nosing the Blanco, the immediate reaction is more subtle than the Joven. A dry, mineral note first hits the pallet followed by suggestions of marigold.
Nosing the Añejo inspires notes of cedar and sap, hinting at the life in the wood instead of the flavors that were burned out of the wood. Just as the two preceding the Añejo, this expression is different than your typical aged liquor.
New York, Florida, Illinois, Colorado, Texas, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada. If you cannot find Casa Dragones in your state, email “Info@casadragones.com” and Bertha will make sure to take care of it.
@casadragrones @berthagonzalesn
I have a cocktail I adore called the Micheloma by Pablo Pasti.
Tequila.
The recent elections have really left a mark on me. I would love to have a drink with Kamala Harris and I want to ask her what are we going to do for females in the beverage industry.
I do believe that I am trying to prove my case that tequila pairs well with French, Italian, and Japanese cuisine. I am going to prove that everyday of the week.
This episode was produced by Edie Frederick, with editing and sound design by Samantha Reed, delicious Tequila courtesy of Bertha González Nieves and Casa Dragones Tequila, and a little bit of interview magic by yours truly. This has been a Modern Bar Cart production, copyright 2020.
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