Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/61075
A LONE STAR LIFE: SPECIAL REPORT ence's conclusion he told me how surprising and delightful the whole thing turned out. "Organizationally speaking, we worked our rear-ends off to accomplish that." Bohanan said that the event raised over $60,000 for HeartGift, SACC's official charity for the year, which pays for children's life-saving heart surger- ies. And besides that, he told me, it was a damn good time: "We're going to keep doing it every year. I want to get more like-minded bars involved. There are men and women who try to prepare cocktails like they were done before Prohibition, with a professional demeanor. We love those people. This is what SACC is all about." If the second San Antonio Cocktail Conference (tentatively scheduled SoHo Spirits Wine & Martini Bar hosted a Texas spirits–only party. Mi Tierra, an enormous and popular Mexican restaurant and bakery with an ornate bar and banquet facility. In the midst of all that dark wood and velvet drapery sat Kinky Friedman. For the uninitiated, Kinky is sort of the Texas Mark Twain. He's a writer and orator, a singer and performer. He's mounted a notable run for governor, and released a brand of fine, elegant cigars. On this day, Kinky was introducing his new Man in Black tequila. "Over the years, my cigar-smoking habit has dulled my taste buds; I like tequila with a lot of flavor. None of that Mexican mouthwash other tequilas are," he said. Using only 8-, 9-, and 10-year-old agave, Man in Black is then filtered once to produce textured tequila in Plata, Reposado, Añejo, and six-year-old Extra Añejo varieties. There were nightly off-site SACC activities, too. On Friday, for example, chartered river taxis, complete with cocktail service, navigated San Antonio's celebrated River Walk for a different kind of bar hop. I am familiar enough with the city to be picky about which downtown destinations are worth showing to fellow out-of- towners, and so I was glad to see two of those spots, SoHo and Ocho, on the after-dark itinerary.Ocho, at the boutique Hotel Havana, hosted an intimate Cuban themed gathering at its outdoor terrace, while SoHo Wine & Martini Bar welcomed large crowds throughout the night to enjoy a Texas 112 / the tasting panel / april 2012 spirits–only party. Perhaps one of SACC's most impres- sive feats came on Saturday, when several of the state's distillers convened for a panel on the future of Texas spirits. Among the speakers were Tito Beveridge (Tito's Handmade Vodka), Paula Angerstein (Paula's Texas Spirits), Dan Garrison (Garrison Brothers Texas Bourbon), and Daniel Barnes (Treaty Oak Distilling). Although there was plenty of sour talk about the against- all-odds, post-Prohibition birth of the Texas spirit industry, the frustrations of working within the state's three-tier distribution system and the outdated nuisances of blue laws, there were also encouraging signs for pulling together a Texas Distilled Spirits Council to help take the future of the industry to greater heights. As for the rest of the weekend, there was plenty of action at the Grand Tasting, with start-up brands and foreign companies trying to break into the U.S. market as well as established brands pouring samples of what makes them great; there were mixol- ogy contests; and there were a few unofficial side-parties, which I'm not at liberty to discuss. Let's just say this type of conference reveals a lot of interesting ideas about modern alcohol culture. "It just could not have gone bet- ter," said Mark Bohanan, owner and Executive Chef of San Antonio's Bohanan's restaurant, and visionary behind SACC. Shortly after the confer- A panel discussion on the future of Texas spirits featuring (left to right) Dan Garrison (Garrison Brothers Texas Bourbon), Paula Angerstein (Paula's Texas Spirits), moderator Bill Norris (co-moderator), Tito Beveridge (Tito's Handmade Vodka) and Daniel Barnes (Treaty Oak Distilling). Kenny Flores (left) and Alejandro Santa- Cruz, owners of new super-premium mezcal Wahaka. for January 2013) matches this year's success, then I foresee two outcomes for the Lone Star State: 1) Texas will be drinking better than ever in the future, and 2) With so many great places to find a cocktail in San Antonio, the Alamo might end up being forgotten altogether. PHOTO: ANTHONY HEAD PHOTO: KIRK WEDDLE PHOTO: KIRK WEDDLE