Tag: mezcal

Hearth & Home

Hearth & Home

After last week’s own invention, the Mekishiko Hito, I wanted to find another similarly smoky/spicy cocktail. Bourbon & mezcal seem to be fairly common combinations, but I was surprised to find this recipe from a restaurant/bar in New York, called The Daisy: this couples bourbon, mezcal and, to my surprise, yellow Chartreuse.

The combination looked pretty unusual, and the garnish (a burning cinnamon stick) just seemed to add to the madness. The blog where I found this recipe – The Bojon Gourmet – described the resulting drink as ‘bright, herbaceous & boozy with notes of smoke & spice’. I think I would agree. Chartreuse is certainly herbaceous, the bourbon almost vanishes in the mix & the ginger liqueur adds a slow burn. I’ll be making this one for Christmas, but I will certainly be making my own ginger liqueur for that version; Stone’s Ginger Wine is great, but perhaps a little too sweet for my liking, although its reduced ABV does stop this drink form becoming an absolute monster. In terms of heritage, it’s definitely come out of the whisky sour route: bourbon & lemon juice, sweetened by the ginger, is a classic sour mix; it’s the sudden appearance of the Chartreuse that is the surprise.

Recipe:

To make one, shake together the following:

45ml bourbon

20ml fresh lemon juice

20ml ginger liqueur

20ml yellow Chartreuse (the green might be too strong here)

After a good long shake, strain into a chilled rocks glass over a single large cube. Ignite one end of the cinnamon stick and either pop the unburnt end into the drink as a smouldering straw, or balance a shorter piece on the ice, as I did. There’s no need for bitters here (it is a sour base, after all).

Division Bell

A Margarita variant, the Division Bell comes from the mind of Phil Ward, one of the key bartenders credited with New York’s cocktail revival in the 90s. His much-missed venue, Mayahuel, closed there in 2017 & has since re-opened amid some controversy, but some of his most popular creations from there live on. Here is the Division Bell, that pairs the smokiness of mezcal with the citrus flavours of Aperol, which leads to its connection with the Margarita. But the smoky flavours and the richness of the Aperol make this a more intriguing proposition (though I’ve nothing against a Margarita – a properly-made one with a good tequila is a wonderful thing, indeed). I have used the most available brand of mezcal in the UK, Monte Alban, which, frankly, most mezcal aficionados think is poor stuff – but it’s what you’ll mostly find here until mezcal gets the same kind of interest levels as tequila gets now. However, the results aren’t bad at all – if Monte Alban isn’t great, then the Aperol and maraschino lifts it up. This is a really clever drink – it combines elements of a Last Word with a Margarita, and makes more of both. A perfect example of just a little tweak to a recipe can make a very different drink.

Method:

30ml mezcal

22.5ml Aperol

22.5ml fresh lime juice

15ml maraschino

Shake all of the ingredients with plenty of ice, then double strain into a chilled coupe. Difford’s guide suggests grapefruit as a garnish, but I preferred orange to match the Aperol better. No bitters required, as the Aperol provides this, but if you want a more bitter-fronted drink, a few drops of Bob’s Orange & Mandarin would work nicely