On the outskirts of Albuquerque, New Mexico, amid 25 acres of farmland and lavender fields, by a Two-MICHELIN-Key inn and a celebrated farm-to-table fine dining spot, the team at Los Poblanos is distilling their own gin.
Using botanicals from their farm and the surrounding valley — evoking notes of rose, hawthorn and chamomile — the distillers have bottled the essence of the area, an agricultural stretch of the state in the shadow of the Sandia Mountains.
Joseph Simonson, the spirits manager at Campo at Los Poblanos, the site’s restaurant, converts all that legacy into a single, clear sip.
“The goal is to make cocktails that are clearly connected to the farm, New Mexico and the producers we work with, while still keeping the base spirit recognizable,” he says.
The winner of this year’s MICHELIN Guide Southwest Exceptional Cocktails Award, Simonson has created a drink list with a sharp signature. Pick from a bright gin drink, a floral riff on a margarita or a whiskey sour laden with lemon balm, and you know you are toasting with the freshest local bounty, expertly remixed.
“With each concept, we ask ourselves, ‘Why can this cocktail only exist here at Los Poblanos?’” he says.
Take the Inner Circle, a seasonal addition to the menu that uses a house-made gin in a split base with several different rums. The starting point feels similar to a mojito, before peach amaro, fino sherry, fortified wine and Los Poblanos dill — harvested and infused right before summer’s peak — transform the cocktail into something completely distinctive.
“I tend to like cocktails that start with a recognizable structure or flavor and then add less familiar ingredients without losing that structure,” he says.
In an interview below, learn about the unusual herbs growing at Los Poblanos, how Simonson’s background in film production influences his craft, and take home a recipe for a lavender gin cocktail inspired by a French 75.
How did you design the cocktail list at Campo at Los Poblanos? What kind of themes were you trying to express?
We want the beverage program to represent our community and history while supporting Rio Grande Valley producers and reflecting our “three sisters” philosophy of land, community and culture.
We call it a Campo-to-cocktail program because the bar works closely with the farm, kitchen and distillery. The farm grows herbs and botanicals for us each season, including some less common herbs like lemon balm, lemon verbena, lovage, marjoram, savory and different varieties of basil. We also preserve fruit such as elderberry, figs, jujube, hawthorn, persimmons, pomegranates and quince through infusions and pickling. The bar and kitchen regularly exchange ingredients, infusions and brines, and the distillery works with us on botanical spirits and bitters.
We use techniques such as infusion, clarification, preservation and aging when they help us get more from an ingredient or extend a seasonal harvest.
The farm grows herbs and botanicals including some less common herbs like lemon balm, lemon verbena, lovage, marjoram, savory and different varieties of basil. © Elizabeth Wells/Campo at Los Poblanos
You are doing some very interesting things with gin. Tell us more about that.
We have two Los Poblanos gins, Western Dry, made with 17 botanicals and notes of rose, hawthorn, chamomile and piñon resin presenting alongside classic juniper; and Lavender, distilled with four lavender varietals. Both of which are intended to reflect our farm in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque and the greater Rio Grande Valley. Because we have our own distillery, the bar and distilling teams can work together on botanical spirits and bitters and consider how they will ultimately be used in cocktails.
We’ve also been aging gin for several years in a rotating limited-release series using barrels from Campo whiskey selections, most recently Eagle Rare bourbon and Rittenhouse rye. We’re also working with a local winery on an experimental series using their barrels.
At Campo, we always feature several cocktails built around our own gins. At the same time, our spirits selection includes gins from other producers in New Mexico, the United States and internationally, which gives us a broader context for how different producers approach the category.
What do you enjoy about gin and making gin cocktails?
I like how expressive gin can be while still being a relatively straightforward spirit to drink. Personally, I often default to gin and soda, but in cocktails its botanical character gives us a lot to work with. It can reflect the place where it’s made, and it works especially well in split-base cocktails because it can bring out characteristics in other spirits.
I also like how many smaller and locally focused distilleries have been able to develop their own styles of gin. There is a lot of variation in the category.
One of the more rewarding parts of working with gin is serving it to guests who think they don’t like it. If they trust us to make something for them and end up enjoying it, we’ve helped them experience the spirit in a different way.
Step up to the bar and enjoy a unique cocktail made with Los Poblanos own distilled gins. © Joseph Simonson/Campo at Los Poblanos
Which cocktail on the menu reflects your personal style?
“Inner Circle” is a recent cocktail that reflects a lot of what I like to work with. It’s in the Sidecar family and uses our Western Dry gin in a split base with several rums, including Clairin, a traditional Haitian sugarcane spirit that I find especially expressive.
The starting point was to use familiar flavors such as mint and rum to give guests an alternative to a Mojito while introducing some products they may not already know. The drink also includes peach amaro, fino sherry, Pineau des Charentes blanc, mint infusion, lemon juice, LP Rose Cocktail Rimming Sugar and dill that we harvested and infused before the hottest part of summer.
The name “Inner Circle” refers to the history of the property and also to the community and producers involved in the program.
How did you get your start in cocktails?
More than 10 years ago, I discovered Death & Company’s first book, Modern Classic Cocktails, and started working through its recipes and infusions. It gave me an appreciation for the precision involved in cocktail making and for how much small adjustments can change a drink.
My background is in film production, and that probably affects how I think about cocktails. I like drinks that have a clear beginning, middle and end. I think about which flavors appear first, how the drink develops on the palate and what remains at the finish.
One thing I appreciated immediately about cocktails was how quickly an idea could be tested compared with cinematography or film editing. You can make an adjustment and understand the result right away, even though getting a drink exactly where you want it can still take a lot of trial and refinement.
Recipe: Campo at Los Poblanos’ Lavender ’99
The Lavender ’99, according to Simonson, is “an effervescent LP Lavender Gin cocktail” for those who enjoy a classic French 75 or Aviation.
He says, “we appreciate how well Champagne and sours pair with food, and this drink brings a big flavor of the farm into an approachable cocktail for many. The cocktail name refers to the year 1999, when we planted lavender and began our journey into the sustainable lavender business.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz. Los Poblanos Lavender Gin0.75 oz. Rothman & Winter Creme de Violette0.5 oz. Fresh squeezed lemon juice0.5 oz. Los Poblanos Lavender Syrup4-5 oz. Brut Champagne or sparkling winelemon twist and lavender sprig to garnish
Method:
Add all ingredients to an iced stemless wine glass. Stir briefly to integrate. Express the lemon twist and insert along with a lavender sprig.
Campo at Los Poblanos’ Lavender ’99 © Campo at Los Poblanos
Hero image: The MICHELIN Guide Southwest Exceptional Cocktails Award winner, Joseph Simonson, the spirits manager at Campo at Los Poblanos. © Campo at Los Poblanos
Written by
David Shortell
David Shortell is a contributing writer for The MICHELIN Guide, based in Mexico City. His news and travel reporting has appeared in publications including The New York Times, CNN, and Travel+Leisure.
Dining and Cooking