Buzzy downtown Phoenix bar was just named one of the best in US

Barcoa Agaveria, a downtown Phoenix bar that specializes in the spirits of Mexico, made national news this week when it was named one of the 27 best bars in the country on the 2024 USA TODAY Bars of the Year list, curated by USA TODAY Network food writers across the country.

"What? Are you kidding? I’m speechless. What an honor," Barcoa's David Tyda said. "We built this place without a business plan. We just had our hearts open and listened to where this place wanted us to go."

Tyda went on to say that this honor isn't just recognition for him and Barcoa co-owner Ryan Oberholtzer, but also for the many Arizona-based visual artists — including La Morena, Tato Caraveo, IZE and Spawk — who painted the agaveria's murals, and the small, family producers whose bottles are celebrated and stories are told in the tasting room and at the bar counter.

What makes Barcoa stand out

Arizona shares a desert and a border with Mexico, and the countries' longtime cultural exchanges are most evident in food and drink. Beyond tequila, there is a world of spirits to explore, from Sonoran bacanora to raicilla from Jalisco and Nayarit. There are wild and farmed mezcals. There's sotol, an ancient, vegetal spirit made in the Chihuahuan desert not from agave, but from the dasylirion wheeleri or desert spoon plant, which yields only one bottle in its lifetime.

The -coa of the bar's name refers to the tool used to cut the leaves off an agave plant before fermentation. That level of detail sets the stage in the moody basement haunt, a haven for agave nerds and a welcoming watering hole for the curious. With a collection of bottles from small producers, some exclusively available at Barcoa, there is no better place to try a unique taste of the Southwest.

Designed by Paulina Hassel-Martinez, an interior designer from from Guadalajara, everything in the space from the bar tops to the tiles and artwork is made by Mexican artisans, many of them personal friends of Tyda and Oberholtzer.

Expect tastings, flights and Spanish classes

“We constantly say: This culture is not ours by birthright, but it’s our right to fall in love with it and to want to share it," Tyda said.

To that end, the bar hosts free Spanish classes and flights as an accessible way to get to know a range of spirits for those who aren't up for a full night of more elaborate tasting. And cocktails are some of the best in town, highlighting the unique features of the base liquors they are made with.

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Drinks to know on the Barcoa menu

“Espiritu de café is a tequila-based espresso martini inspired by carajillo, which is made with espresso and liquor 43,” Tyda said. “In our version, we infuse liquor 43 with coffee for 48 hours and mix it with Azu?ia reposado, which has this silky quality to it, Made with coconut milk and a white chocolate-flavored cream with cinnamon sprinkled on top, it’s got scent and it has texture and you taste tequila, but you also taste espresso martini.”

More booze-forward, the elote moda pairs smoky mezcal with ancestral corn whisky and piloncillo for a distinctive take on an old fashioned. Un poco de mentha introduces Oaxacan rum and gin that's mellowed with a mint, lime and jicama cordial.

After a cocktail or tasting, guests tend to fall in love one or another obscure variety. Luckily, the bar is also a bottle shop.

Barcoa Agaveria in downtown Phoenix

Details: 829 N. First Ave., Phoenix; 602-980-0788, barcoaphx.com.

Felicia Campbell is dining editor at The Arizona Republic, USA TODAY Network West. Reach her at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Downtown Phoenix tequila bar named one of the best in US