Skip to main content

How Sierra Norte Came to Make Mexican Whiskey with Heritage Corn

Doug French is no stranger to taking wild turns. A zigzagging road of career recalibrations  — caused by everything from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to agave shortages — lead him to his latest venture, Sierra Norte Whiskey, and heirloom Mexican corn.

French, a distiller in Oaxaca, Mexico, primarily makes Scorpion Mezcal — the result of a job change in the mid-1990s, when his gig at a fabric-weaving factory was eliminated. “I had moved to Mexico from the San Francisco Bay area and everything was going well,” says  French, before talking about the implementation of NAFTA. “Free trade kicked in and 75 percent of all the factories, including mine, went out of business.”

Recommended Videos

Without a job in Mexico, French needed to find a way to pay his way through life. He owned a building and thought about making a product immune to diplomatic changes: Mezcal is something that can only be made in Mexico and sold elsewhere.

Sierra Norte

Years later as agave shortages hit the country, French lacked the raw material to keep the distillery firing on all cylinders and the building eventually closed. With a crew of 15, all women and most mothers, French needed to find a way to keep them fed. An attempt at rum was made. Since the crew’s production was relatively small, French says it was impossible to compete with the large rum producers. The solution? Switch to whiskey.

During this process, he discovered that Oaxaca claims to be the origin of corn, particularly a slowly disappearing heritage breed that comes in every color of the rainbow.

“There are farmers here growing the white, yellow, and black heirloom corn, so I decided to start buying the corn and make the whiskey out of this ancestral corn,” he said. “In doing my recipes, we found that if I keep the colors separated, they have different flavors, just because the colors are different. Instead of one product, I end up with three.”

Sierra Norte

The yellow corn whiskey is buttery on the nose, like popcorn, with a roasted fruit character on the tongue and a honey-like finish. Black corn contributes cherry to the nose, with plantain on the palate and an almond and vanilla finish. The white corn whiskey is vanilla and almond up front, with green apple in the mouth and a cinnamon finish.

These three initial single-barrel expressions of Mexican whiskey from Sierra Norte have not been aged long — six to eight months in French oak. All have received positive reviews from publications, and French is happy with that.

“The fact I’ve made mezcal for 23 years and now a whiskey with high ratings. That’s pretty amazing,” he says. “I guess 23 years as a master distiller helps.”

French is now playing with red, purple, and green corns and hopes to have two or three new Mexican whiskey varietals ready by next year.

Pat Evans
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Pat Evans is a writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, focusing on food and beer, spirits, business, and sports. His full…
The 6 best Keurig coffee makers after making countless cups of coffee
Check out this list to find your next coffee machine
A blue Keurig K-Classic Single Serve K-Cup Pod Coffee Maker placed on a kitchen countertop with plants nearby

If you're a coffee drinker, or even if you're not, you've had to have heard of the single-serve pod-cased coffee system Keurig by now. The system took the world by storm almost three decades ago and never looked back. Whether you're interested in joining team Keurig or have been a long-time Keurig fan, now there's a Keurig for every type of coffee drinker

The thing is, there are a staggering number of Keurig models to choose from, so being confident you've found the best one can be tough. Choosing from a list of the best Keurig coffee makers will make it easier to enjoy a stellar cup of joe every morning. Here are some of our favorite Keurig models to help you narrow down your options in 2025.

Read more
Dogfish Head toasts Deadheads with new beer
An ale for Casey Jones
dogfish head grateful dead beer pale ale

Major players in craft beer and music are celebrating by way of a collaboration. Dogfish Head Brewery has teamed up with the Grateful Dead with the release of the Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale. The beer commemorates the 60th birthday of the iconic American rock band and the beer label's 30th anniversary.

Brewery founder Sam Calagione spent some time with Grateful Dead's archivist and historian David Lemeiux, listening to music and sipping beers. The two decided on the perfect recipe to pair with the music and even curated a playlist to accompany the beer. Brewed with a hippy mindset, the beer features Kernza® grains, granola, and a pair of hops in Azacca and El Dorado.

Read more
How to freeze-dry food: 4 easy methods to preserve your produce
Have you ever wanted to preserve fresh produce? Freeze-drying is an excellent way to do so — here's how
Freeze-dried strawberries on a slate counter

If the recent spike in grocery prices and issues with our food supply chain have shown us anything, it's that it's probably a good idea to keep some nonperishable food around the house in case of any type of shortage or emergencies. Personally, knowing that my family and I would be able to sustain ourselves through tough times is a comforting feeling. I have found one of the best ways to preserve food for the long term is by freeze-drying it, and you don't have to wait for the apocalypse to enjoy freeze-dried foods.

Read more