Women’s History Month Feature
PaSH Magazine is celebrating Women’s History Month with a Q&A style mini-series highlighting women from many different industries making an impact in the world, their communities and for themselves. In this Q&A we will spend time with Christa Cotton.
Meet Christa Cotton
A Georgia native, Christa moved to New Orleans after helping her parents establish Georgia’s first legal distillery since Prohibition. Christa is passionate about all things Southern, from cocktails and entertaining to the strong farming traditions and community essential to Southern culture. Christa became the CEO of El Guapo in 2017. As a certified sommelier, she sources the finest raw ingredients for her bitters, syrups, and mixers and is dedicated to sustainability—using only recycled materials for the labels, glass packaging, and supporting local farmers. When she’s not being a full-time mom or at the office, she also serves on the board of Glass Half Full, a New Orleans non-profit focused on glass recycling.
What inspired your move from Georgia to New Orleans, and how has the city influenced your vision for El Guapo?
I always knew I was going to live in New Orleans. I fell in love with the architecture, the history, the hospitality, and that unmistakable “je ne sais quoi” that the city has. There is an energy here that celebrates beauty, flavor, and gathering around a good drink. New Orleans is the capital of cocktails, and drinks here are woven into the fabric of everyday life. They are how people celebrate, host, and connect with one another. Living here made me deeply appreciate the craft and tradition behind great drinks, and it inspired me to build El Guapo in a way that honors that history while making it easier for people to bring that same sense of occasion into their own homes.
As a certified sommelier, how do you balance technical expertise with storytelling and Southern tradition when developing your bitters, syrups, and mixers?
My training as a sommelier taught me to think carefully about balance, structure, and how ingredients interact with one another. But the soul of what we do at El Guapo is really about storytelling and place. We work with incredible raw materials, many sourced from farmers and spice importers we know personally, and every ingredient has a story behind it. Southern food and drink traditions are very generous and very flavorful, so I try to honor that by creating products that feel layered, expressive, and rooted in real ingredients. The technical side ensures the product performs beautifully in a drink, while the storytelling keeps it connected to the culture that inspired it.
El Guapo has been advocating for an inclusive drinking culture long before it became mainstream. Why was it important to create zero-proof options that still feel elevated and celebratory?
From the very beginning, I believed that everyone deserves to feel included in a great drink moment, whether they are drinking alcohol or not. There are so many reasons someone might choose not to drink, but that should never mean they are left out of the experience. Our goal has always been to create products that bring the same complexity, flavor, and sense of occasion to every glass. When someone pours an El Guapo drink, spirited or spirit-free, it should feel thoughtful, celebratory, and worthy of the moment. That philosophy was part of the brand long before the phrase “zero proof” became popular.
Sustainability is deeply embedded in your business—from recycled packaging to sourcing whole, non-GMO ingredients. How do your values guide decision-making as the company scales?
At El Guapo, protecting the places and people we love is part of the long game. Every choice, big or small, moves us toward a future where craft, culture, and conservation can thrive together.
From production to packaging, every decision we make considers the environmental footprint we leave behind. And scaling up should never come at the cost of cutting corners or compromising values. We invest in sustainability because it ensures consistent, high-quality products, builds trust with conscious consumers, and future-proofs our business against wasteful industry practices.
Growth is exciting, but doing it sustainably is the key, and it makes every bottle we produce a reflection of our commitment to quality, craftsmanship, and responsibility.
You’re committed to supporting Southern farmers and local suppliers. Why is protecting regional agriculture such a critical part of El Guapo’s mission?
Quality starts at the source. Supporting Southern farmers and regional suppliers allows us to showcase the incredible agricultural heritage of this region while keeping those food systems strong for future generations. Our products are built on real, whole ingredients, which means sustainability starts with how and where we source them. We prioritize responsibly sourced ingredients and farmer partnerships. We live on the front lines of climate change, and we want to be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem. For example, the strawberries we use for Cajun Grenadine are exclusively sourced from Ponchatoula, Louisiana, and the syrup is made seasonally during the peak of Louisiana strawberry harvest. And our Demerara Syrup is made with single-origin sugar sourced from Alma Sugarcane Plantation in Lakeland, Louisiana.
What did it mean to you to be named a Tory Burch Foundation Female Founder honoree in 2025, and how did that recognition impact your journey?
I am proud of the momentum we have built at El Guapo without straying from our culture and core tenets. I started by making bitters in crawfish boil pots, and we have grown into a national zero-proof brand that creates jobs, advances sustainability, and invites everyone to the table. Receiving the 2025 Tory Burch Foundation Founder’s Award was a career high, and the stamp of approval from women I admire like Tory Burch, Martha Stewart, Anna Wintour, and Sara Blakely means the world. Being named to Wine Enthusiast’s Future 40 Tastemakers in 2025 was another pinch me moment that validates years of grit and disciplined execution. I am also proud that our team leads the Good Food Awards elixirs category with seven wins and that we have earned the trust of top retailers, restaurants, bars, and hotels across the country. Most of all, I am proud of the people behind the brand, the joyful culture we have built, and the positive contributions we continue to make to New Orleans.
Thank you for reading this installment of the Women’s History Month Features. Come back each day to read a new inspiring story, centering women.
PaSH Magazine is a lifestyle publication. Our slogan is “all your tiny obsessions.” We are strong advocates of self-love, self-care, body positivity and supporting minorities, especially women, people of color and communities not highlighted in mainstream media. Please send pitches to southernpashmag@gmail.com. Please note that we sometimes use affiliate links. If you purchase anything from a link we have provided, we may receive a small commission. This money is used to help support our efforts at PaSH Inc. Check out our sister magazines Explore Georgia Now , Glownoire , plurvylife. and www.redpashmag.com! This article may mention several of our sister brands including but not limited to: Plurvy, Curvy Girls Rock, AYTO, PaSH Publishing and more
