Casa Dragones Unveils New Tequila Tasting Experience With Inspired Culinary Partnership
Bertha González Nieves and Daniela Soto-Innes at the debut of Casa Dragones x Rubra Palapa Bar
In the male-dominated world of Mexican spirits, all eyes turn to the leading lady of tequila: Bertha González Nieves.
Co-founder and CEO of ultra-premium sipping tequila Casa Dragones, González Nieves is the world's first female Maestra Tequilera, or master tequila distiller as designated by the Mexican Academy of Tequila Tasters and the Tequila Regulatory Council.
González Nieves received the designation only after spending 12 years in the industry, meaning that every tequila you've ever sampled prior was crafted by a man. With the exception of Casa Dragones and a few emerging female-led brands like Mijenta Tequila, most tequila formulations are still made exclusively by men.
Now, González Nieves celebrates the debut of Casa Dragones' new tequila-tasting experience and bar. A labor of love from the start, it comes to life with a one-of-a-kind cocktail and culinary collaboration with one of Mexico's coolest female chefs, Daniela Soto-Innes.
Lush landscapes are nourished by ocean breezes in Mexico's Riviera Nayarit, where the Casa Dragones Palapa Bar by Rubra debuts as the brand's first bar and tasting room outside of its home in San Miguel de Allende. Its location on the grounds of the W Punta de Mita is an integral part of its story. It sits inside the property's all-natural huerto, a carefully tended garden that feeds the menus at Soto-Innes' fresh new restaurant, Rubra, just steps away.
"We are very excited to introduce our first tasting room and bar outside of our home in San Miguel de Allende, and especially excited to work with Daniela on her incredible vision of a bar within a huerto," said González Nieves at the bar's debut. "Partnering with Daniela [Soto-Innes] on the Palapa Bar gives us the opportunity to explore and create unique experiences with local ingredients and local talent to continue to seduce and enamor the tequila lover."
Casa Dragones x Rubra Palapa Bar at W Punta de Mita
The huerto is more than just a magical destination for sipping spirits at golden hour. Part of the joy of the experience is touring the gardens, ducking around fruit-laden trees and bushes of fragrant herbs with their dedicated caretakers to hear about the space's origins and expansion. Along the way, pick the herbs, fruits and flowers that form the base of each handcrafted cocktail.
"We decided to create el huerto not just to harvest ingredients, but to give energy back to the land that inspires us," said Soto-Innes. 'It's our way of honoring Nayarit...we didn't just want to design a menu, but to cultivate a living experience, one that grows from the roots with respect and intention.'
Local beverage director Ivan Zuñiga has carefully crafted the bar's first cocktail menu in collaboration with the huerto's agricultural team to make the most of the peak flavors of seasonal blooms. Ingredients range from varietals of mint, basil and an array of chiles to the unexpected, like mustard, lemon verbena and wasabi.
Cocktails at Casa Dragones x Rubra Palapa Bar
Highlights include cocktails like the Mexican Dream, made with Casa Dragones Añejo, yellow lemon oleo, St-Germain, mandarin juice, lime juice and guava purée. La Curandera is made with with Casa Dragones Reposado, chamomile Dolin, clarified green apple juice, lime juice, yellow lemon juice, grapefruit bitters and mineral water.
Tequila purists, no need to sweat; the Palapa Bar by Rubra offers more than just cocktails. A tequila tasting features Casa Dragones' four distinct sipping expressions: Casa Dragones Blanco, Casa Dragones Añejo Barrel Blend, Casa Dragones Reposado Mizunara and Casa Dragones Joven.
Each tequila is paired with small plates from Rubra, which call on seasonally harvested plants, seafood and the bounty found within surrounding landscapes. A jícama and manzano chili aguachile with passion fruit granita pairs with with Casa Dragones Joven to start the experience. A whey bonbon made from Chontalpa chocolate and whey caramel pairs with Casa Dragones Añejo. The rest? Let it be part of the experience that unfolds along the way.
Tatiana Bilbao-designed Casa Dragones x Rubra Palapa Bar
The bar space packs just as much punch as its spirits. Designed by renowned Mexico City-based designer Tatiana Bilbao, the palapa-style structure, open-sided with a thatched roof made from dried palm fronds, feels intimately tied to the gardens that spread out beyond it and yet supremely elevated.
Bilbao is known for her collaborative works and sensitive design approaches, which made her an obvious fit for the collaborative work between González Nieves and Soto-Innes. The bar itself was originally designed as part of a tasting room for Art Basel Miami Beach, crafted of highly sustainable terrazzo, typical to Mexican design.
Stools were handcrafted by designer Raul Cabra, the director of Oax-i-fornia, who works closely with artisans and designers in Oaxaca. Other thoughtful details throughout the space pull from the historical and spiritual roots of the land and its native population, including the Cora and Huichol people.
Located within the W Punta de Mita resort in Mexico's Riviera Nayarit, the Casa Dragones Palapa Bar by Rubra is open Wednesdays to Sundays, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Reservations are available via SevenRooms.
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The bar itself was originally designed as part of a tasting room for Art Basel Miami Beach, crafted of highly sustainable terrazzo, typical to Mexican design. Stools were handcrafted by designer Raul Cabra, the director of Oax-i-fornia, who works closely with artisans and designers in Oaxaca. Other thoughtful details throughout the space pull from the historical and spiritual roots of the land and its native population, including the Cora and Huichol people. Located within the W Punta de Mita resort in Mexico's Riviera Nayarit, the Casa Dragones Palapa Bar by Rubra is open Wednesdays to Sundays, 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Reservations are available via SevenRooms.
