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RECIPE: Rosemary, Apple Cider Margarita
This cocktail screams winter. It has the hearty rosemary herbaceous notes carried by the sweetness in the apple, and finally balanced by the smokey, sexiness of Mezcal Amarás. You can make this in large batches, like a large batch of punch, or make as single serve cocktails. ¡ Salud !
Rosemary, Apple Cider Margarita
This cocktail screams winter. It has the hearty rosemary, herbaceous notes carried by the sweetness in the apple, and finally balanced by the smokey, sexiness of Mezcal Amarás. You can make this in large batches, like a large batch of punch for a party, or make as single serve cocktails. ¡ Salud !
Ingredients:
2 ounces Mezcal Amarás
4 ounces unfiltered apple cider
1/2 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Dash of bitters, (Peychaud’s)
1 sprig fresh rosemary, charred on the comal
Method:
In a cocktail stirring glass combine all the liquid ingredients with ice.
On a preheated comal, toast the rosemary sprig until it smokes and becomes fragrant. Place it immediately in the cocktail stirring glass.
Stir the mixture and pour into a cocktail glass. Use the sprig as a garnish and stir stick.
RECIPE: Watermelon Margarita
Happy Pride! This year we celebrate 50 years since our forefathers took a stand at Stonewall. I am a proud gay man, a proud Mexican-American and thankful that we have come this far. Let’s celebrate, realize how far we have come, and look at what else we need to fight for! This cocktail tastes like summer - ¡ vamos fiestar !
Happy Pride! This year we celebrate 50 years since our forefathers took a stand at Stonewall. I am a proud gay man, a proud Mexican-American and thankful that we have come this far. Let’s celebrate, realize how far we have come, and look at what else we need to fight for! This cocktail tastes like summer - ¡ vamos fiestar !
Ingredients:
2 ounces mezcal or tequila
1.5 ounces lime juice
2 ounces blended watermelon
1 teaspoon agave nectar
Salt for the rim
Method:
In a shaker pour the mezcal or tequila, lime juice over ice.
In a blender, puree watermelon, strain and reserve.
Pour the watermelon puree and agave nectar into the shaker.
Salt the glasses.
Shake the cocktail until well frothed and pour into the salted glasses.
RECIPE: Pride Pineapple Mule Cocktail
Happy Pride! It's a good year to be gay and orgulloso! This cocktail is my interpretation of a refreshing Pride after a long day in the sun. With the Morris Kitchen Ginger syrup and the Los Amantes (the lovers in Spanish) this cocktail follows the tradition of the mezcal mule, but with pineapple to make you sweeter. The comal roasted pineapple and spicy ginger dance on the palette, invoking the subtle smoke in the mezcal.
Happy Pride! It's a good year to be gay and orgulloso! This cocktail is my interpretation of a refreshing Pride after a long day in the sun. With the Morris Kitchen Ginger syrup and the Los Amantes (the lovers in Spanish) this cocktail follows the tradition of the mezcal mule, but with pineapple to make you sweeter. The comal roasted pineapple and spicy ginger dance on the palette, invoking the subtle smoke in the mezcal.
Comal Roasted Pineapple
Makes one cocktail
Ingredients:
Pineapple, sliced in 1 inch thick rings, rind on
2 teaspoons Morris Kitchen Ginger Syrup
1 ounce lime juice
2 ounces Los Amantes Mezcal Joven
splash of seltzer water
candied ginger and pineapple leaf as garnish
Method:
On a comal over medium high heat, roast the pineapple slices until black and charred. Cut away the rind and core, and blend with 2 ounces of water for 3 minutes, alternating between high and low speeds. Filter the juice through a fine mesh stainer to remove the pulp.
Add crushed ice to a shaker and add ginger syrup, 4 ounces of roasted pineapple juice, lime juice, mezcal. Shake thoroughly.
Pour into a glass and top with a splash of seltzer. Garnish with candied ginger and pineapple leaf.
RECIPE: Cucumber Mezcal Margarita
When I think of a refreshing cocktail, I immediately think of cucumbers. Native to India, cucumbers were brought to New Spain post conquest. This Old World squash is high in moisture and I prefer the English variety for cocktails as the sugar content tends to be higher, meaning a sweeter cocktail without additives.
Cucumber Mezcal Margarita
When I think of a refreshing cocktail, I immediately think of cucumbers, lemon, ice. Native to India, cucumbers were brought to New Spain post-conquest. This Old World squash is high in moisture and I prefer the English variety for cocktails as the sugar content tends to be higher, meaning a sweeter cocktail without additives. Leave the skin on the cucumber, it will add a lovely green hue to the drink.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
5 inch piece of English cucumber, cut into cubes
3 ounces lime juice
1.5 ounces lemon juice
1.5 ounces agave nectar
4 ounces Casamigos Mezcal
10 Chili pequin or 3 chili de arbol toasted on a comal until fragrant OR Poctli Sal De Muchos Chiles
crushed ice
Method:
Add the cucumber, lime juice, lemon juice, and agave nectar to a blender and blend thoroughly for 3 minutes. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer.
Pour the mezcal and cucumber mixture into a shaker and shake.
Squeeze lime juice onto a plate, dip the glass rim into the lime juice and then the chili powder to rim the edge.
Add crushed ice to the glass and pour the cucumber mixture over and serve. Garish with another slice of cucumber.
MEZCAL REVIEW: Mezcales de Leyenda San Luis Potosi
Maestro Mezcalero Juan Jose Hernandez comes from a line of producers that have been crafting mezcal for over 100 years. The agaves are cooked for 48 hours in a clay oven, fermented for five days and then distilled in copper stills.
Fresh pineapple notes and jasmine flower finish, Leyenda SLP is a nice bottle to have on hand to truly explore the complexities of agave.
Mezcales de Leyenda are a very proud group who celebrate local mezcal producing communities. They specialize in mezcales that are not from the typical states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, pushing other less smoky flavors forward.
Maestro Mezcalero Juan Jose Hernandez, maker of Leyenda's San Luis Potosi, comes from a line of producers that have been crafting mezcal for over 100 years. The rocky and arid plateau of San Luis Potosi are ideal for the salmiana plant to thrive, taking 7-10 years to mature. The agaves are cooked for 48 hours in a clay oven, fermented for five days and then distilled in copper stills.
Fresh pineapple notes and jasmine flower on the finish, Leyenda SLP is a nice bottle to have on hand to truly explore the complexities of agave varieties. The bottle is heavy glass with a traditional cork and an all-around wrapped label listing the fair trade and organic certified logos.
NOM: NOM-O117X
State: San Luis Potosi
Town: Santa Isabel
Agave: Salmiana
Price: $$
Style: Joven
Distillation: Copper
ABV: 42%
Release year: 2017
Website: http://www.mezcalesdeleyenda.com/product/san-luis-potosi/
MEZCAL REVIEW: Banhez Mezcal Artesenal
This is my favorite ensamble mezcal for the price. Banhez' melange of 90% espadin (Angustofolia) and 10% barril (Karwinski) agaves give a unique profile to the alcohol. A collective group of 20 families from the town of San Miguel Ejutla in the central valley of Oaxaca collaborate on this special distillation.
This is my favorite ensamble mezcal for the price. Banhez' melange of 90% espadin and 10% barril agaves give a unique profile to the alcohol. A collective group of 20 families from the town of San Miguel Ejutla in the central valley of Oaxaca collaborate on this special distillation. The piñas are roasted in underground wood-fired pits, mashed using donkey-pulled tahonas, and finally fermented in wooden tanks and distilled in copper alembics.
This mezcal has tasting notes of roasted pineapple, with the woody goodness of the barril agave in the middle notes, finishing with a subtle floral note on the nose. This is my favorite mezcal for the price for sipping, and also is an excellent mixing mezcal for cocktails.
NOM: NOM-O96X
State: Oaxaca
Town: San Miguel Ejutla
Agave: Espadin, Barril
Style: Joven
Price: $
Distillation: Copper
ABV: 42%
Release year: 2017
