I have kind of a contentious relationship with mint. Keeping some around for use in juleps and such is great, but it always winds up on a top shelf in our fridge, where it remains forgotten until I notice its decidedly brown color. At that point, it's just gotta get used.
Using up a near-empty bottle of mezcal seemed like an interesting merger, and I vaguely remembered a recipe from Speakeasy that sounded like a good fit - which actually wound up being a Prohibition-era classic from the Savoy Cocktail Book. I swapped some mezcal in for gin to provide a smoky flavor, and at that point a pineapple syrup seemed only obvious.
1 1/2 oz gin (Tanqueray)
1/2 oz mezcal (Vida)
1/2 oz pineapple syrup
3/4 oz lemon juice
1/4 oz orange juice
2 bunches mint (about 15-20 leaves)
Shake well to pulverize the mint and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a strip of orange peel.
If you prefer, you could double-strain this to remove the tiny mint pieces, but I kinda like the texture they provide. It also provides a nice visual impact, so you'll want to garnish with a mint leaf instead to keep the color.
No comments:
Post a Comment