b'Arizona AppetitesEating like a local is as simple as dropping into Nellie Cashmans Monday Club Cafe, named for one ofearly Arizonas beloved characters. Not only is the contemporary space easy on the eyes with its clean lines and warm colors, but its menu celebrates the Grand Canyon State in more ways than one. Fancy a steak? The tenderloin, New York strip, and AZ Prime hamburger all use beef sourced from Arizona ranches. Or try a taste of the desert with quintessential flavorslikegreenchiliandbarbecue. Whichever entre you select, chances are it pairs perfectly with one of the restaurants BOTTOMS UP barrel-aged cocktails from Docs Watering Hole, which serves local Arizona wine and When it comes to desert drinks, few can rival tequilas Sonoran pedigree.beer alongside a variety of Grand Canyon Derived from the indigenous agave plant, tequila is to the desert what scotch is to Scotland. And as with its scotch collection, The Westin Kierlandstate-crafted libations that offer a modern does tequila right. interpretation of old-time recipes.Guests who want to sip for themselves can saunter down toWALTZ & WEISER WHISKEY BAR AND CANTINAwhere the resorts signature HERRADURA DOUBLE BARREL REPOSADOis available. Produced at Casa Herradura in Jalisco, Mexico, the tequila is made from 100 percent blue agave tequila thats been aged in one barrel for 11 months, and another barrel for one month. The resulting spirits bear notes of sweet agave, vanilla, butter, and dried fruit.The tequila was introduced in 2015, and if you sampled some on a previous visit, what you taste today will be slightly evolved. The resort recently sourced its sixth barrel, and the distinctionsfrom the agave, the oak of the barrels, the temperaturesshould be tasted to be appreci-ated. For a traditional experience, the signature fine tequila may be paired with sangrita, a blood-red mix of natural juices and spices, which, when sipped with the reposado spirit, optimally extracts the agave flavor from the tequila, illuminating the beverages flavor profile. Try it in a tipple at the saloon, or bring home a bottle. You can only find it, after all, at The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa. THE WESTIN KIERLAND MAGAZINE 15'