Co-owner of IZO, Gaston Martinez, shares how his mezcal helped their agave spirits stand out

San Diego Magazine's Happy Half Hour

In the spirit of spirit month, we’re starting out with a well-deserved bang. Let’s talk about the liquor that comes in hot, and leaves us even hotter – sizzling with a well-paletted spice on the tip of our tongue and a soothing warmth in our bellies. I’m talking about tequila, baby. The tip of the iceberg in the Mexican spirits world. Some of the best are distributed right from San Diego. In fact, Happy Half Hour brings on an old friend who’s expanded his company’s rotation since his last feature in 2020. CEO Gaston Martinez of IZO Spirits saw his one stop mezcal leave people craving more from his Durango-based distillery and heart grown message captured in every bottle. Following its launch, backed by seasoned marketing executive and co-founder Linda Belzberg three years ago, Gaston knew they were destined for greatness – expansion. After curating a mezcal that was consumed on a hypnotic level, yet still competed for space with larger moguls, IZO had to change the game in order to keep up. Here are a couple of updates on IZO since they were here with us last. Soon after its initial debut, their mezcal made its way into the bulky hands of Costco Wholesale, where it reached its biggest audience and gave the team the leg room needed to create other lines of spirits. Their most recent venture: a sotol that takes 15 years to harvest from the plant. Gaston takes pride when describing the sustainable and old world traditions they use to grow and ferment their sotol, as well as all of their other batches. He brings a little piece of home into every step of the process, capping it off with an onyx stone topper mined and shaped straight from Durango, Mexico. “Durango is kind of a small town, but I want to bring it to the world,” he says. The evolving brand continues to stride up the ranks by collaborating with Cut Water, who uses IZO mezcal in its canned cocktails distributed around the world. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, you can find IZO’s latest product, Sotol, in the sweet and tangy “IZO Cupid” at George’s at the Cove right on La Jolla shores. To match Happy Half Hour’s prestigious guest, the hosts stroll downtown for an inside look into where all the magic happens. Recorded right from hypnotic lounge, David and Troy explore the Prestige-Magic Lounge & Showroom – the fifth of Mystique Venues’s fine dining locations bringing some of the best local and touring magicians in the country to the stage. Leading the kitchen is Executive Chef Johnny Hornibrook who has been with Mystique since its first opening in Folsom, California with founder Terry Commons. The three course menu illuminates Johnny's experience on the road traveling around the country and Central America. While surfing couches and hitchhiking his way back to San Diego over the course of 28 days and 88 car rides, he asked, “What can I bring to the table?” to pay them back. Literally. The Stockton local brought home flavors from his adventures serving his Latin American patrons and incorporates them into his seasonal menus. The chef’s pick at Prestige is the au jus prime rib with a trio of tangy horseradish. If dinner and an enchanting show sound good to you right now, Prestige is giving out a couple of promos voiced in this week’s episode to check out. In “Two People, Fifty Bucks,” David felt like Italian comfort food on a cold and rainy San Diego day. He visited Princess Pub in Little Italy for a cottage pie doused in a creamy gravy for the soul. Troy’s pick reminisced on a SD Mag current favorite: IZOLA bakery. Just anything from there. The baked goods are. All. So Mesmerizing.