06 Mar Where You Should Be Drinking: Sazon in Santa Fe

Where You Should Be Drinking: Sazon in Santa Fe

Stop. Stop what you’re doing, and book a trip to Santa Fe. I went there last year and fell in love (here and here). And then I went there again this year, and my love grew all the more.

I’m sure there are several reasons why New Mexico is called the land of enchantment, but Santa Fe has to be among the top. I was thrilled by the chance to swing through quickly and decided to spend my one night dining at Sazon. Sazon was pure magic in and of itself. I was treated like royalty from the moment I called to ask if I could bump my Friday night reservation back. The service is impeccable, the walls are adorned with art, and the food will literally make you drool.

But let’s talk about the drinks. The cocktails looked interesting, especially their winter specials. Warmed horchata and mezcal, yes please! I decided it sounded like an after dinner drinks; so I made a bold off-course choice and decided to start with the…AGAVE flight. There were just so many agaves. I couldn’t say no.

What We Drank & What We Thought

Fun In The Sun flight:

1. Del Maguey Crema de Mezcal – We’ve mentioned a time or two or three that we’ve been on a mezcal kick. But this bottle right here made me want to get down on one knee and pledge my undying love to mezcal. It has a floral aroma, almost like a gin. It had the slightest of bites, but was oh so sweet, with just a hint of smoke. You could tell the Del Maguey was related to mezcal, but the family resemblance was slim. My favorite part was the pleasant milk aftertaste that lingered, again making me want to declare my undying love.
2. Gran Centanario – This silver tequila smelled like you’d expect: like alcohol. Its foretaste was strong, but aftertaste was smooth. The mouthfeel was intense, with woody notes and a spicy kick. It might have been able to hang with the brothers of aged and spiced rum.
3. Asombroso la Rosa – This resposado tequila was my second favorite of the flight. How can you not like something named ‘amazing’? The Asombroso is rested for three months in red wine French oak casks, which is where it gets its pink hue. In fact its the first Bordeaux wine barrel-rested tequila in the world. It smelled deliciously floral and complex, but tasted much smoother with subtle citrus and vanilla notes. It did have a sharp bite of an aftertaste, which wasn’t my favorite but did remind me: yep it’s a tequila.

These were served with traditional sangritas–a pineapple and bloody mary version. They tasted like delicious little shrub shots and I almost asked the waiter for more just of those. I sipped slowly on these three throughout the course of the evening and enjoyed it so much I completely forgot about the horchata mezcal drink. Next time!

If you have never ordered sipping tequilas or mezcals, we can’t recommend it enough. It’s a game changer. As is Santa Fe.

I mean, as they said on the Newsies: Dreams come true. Yeah they do. In Santa Fe.