You already knew Iron Cactus has a wonderful brunch – 18 item buffet brunch plus carving station, omelet station, nearly free mimosas – I wrote about it all before. Something I haven’t covered is their elaborate dessert and cocktail offering!
In celebration of #NationalDessertMonth last month, Iron Cactus put together a dessert and cocktail pairing. Keep in mind – Iron Cactus happy hour is Monday-Friday from 3-6pm. All tequilas are $3 off and I have a few really excellent ones listed below. While I did get to sample desserts and drinks for free, all opinions are my own.
The Mexican Chocolate Torte was our first dessert. The presentation of this little circular dessert was perfect! It was very sweet, topped with chocolate ganache, Mexican caramel, and candied pecans, and was served with ice cream. The torte was filled with peanuts and pecans, making it both a nutty and chocolatey dessert.
The Mexican Chocolate Torte was paired with two different drinks. Herradura Double Barrel tequila and 1000 Stories bourbon barreled aged cabernet. The Herradura Double Barrel that’s served at this particular location isn’t available anywhere else. Iron Cactus picked and customized the specific barrels that were delivered to the restaurant. 1000 Stories bourbon barrel aged Cabernet. This was my favorite wine of the night. It was so smooth and so drinkable! It had no bite whatsoever. I was told this wine is sold at H-E-B (!) for less than $20, but I couldn’t find it the last time I went.
The tres leches cake is my favorite dessert that Iron Cactus offers. That really says something, because 99% of the time, my favorite dessert is something chocolate on chocolate on chocolate. However, the Iron Cactus tres leches cake is perfectly milky and moist, but not soggy. It’s seriously delicious and is my Iron Catus dessert of choice. The tres leches cake was served with Patron XO. It’s a coffee patron which I really enjoyed. It went wonderfully with the tres leches and was my favorite pairing of the night!
Also a delicious dessert is the dulce de leche cheesecake made with a buñuelo crust and Mexican caramel. It was almost too sweet for me but was absolutely delicious when paired with the Condigo 1530 Rosa. The wine is aged in Napa Valley cabernet barrels, which gives it the beautiful rose color. Another wine we tried with the dulce de leche cheesecake was the Bonterra Sauvignon Blanc. Bonterra is an eco-friendly vineyard that practices what they call “biodynamic farming.” Basically, in Bonterra’s eyes, the farm is a living organism which is self-contained, self-sustaining, and follows the cycles of nature. The wine was slightly citrusy. I don’t often drink white wine, but I really enjoyed Bonterra’s Sauvignon Blanc.
While the vanilla bean espresso creme brûlée was a delicious little sweet tart in a tasty crust, it was the cocktail in the pairing that stole the show. The Carajillo coffee – a mixed drink with Patron 43 and sweetened ice coffee – was my favorite drink of the night overall. The Patron added a slight flavor to the coffee, but there was no bitterness at all.
If sweet and tangy is more you dessert style, the Margarita Key Lime Tart looked beautiful and tasted even better. It was topped with house-made whipped cream and ground up lime hard candy. I loved the color and flavor the hard candy added. Herradura Silver and a bubbly La Marca Prosecco were served with the Key Lime Tart. The Herradura Silver is double distilled, aged for 45 days, and definitely has more “heat” than the other tequilas that were tasted. The La Marca Prosecco was a simple, fun, bubbly drink if that’s your type of drink.
The final dessert was the Mexican chocolate mousse. It’s much lighter than their other desserts, which might be what you want after a large Iron Cactus dinner. It was paired with my favorite tequila of the night – Pepe Z. I didn’t even know tequila could be so smooth. It’s like… sipping tequila. Incredible.
Next time you go to Iron Cactus, don’t skip dessert and an evening cocktail! Thanks for having me out again, Iron Cactus. Always enjoy my evening and your delicious food and wonderful staff.
