The folks over at Wine Enthusiast project that the drink of summer is going to include Mezcal. They've been crunching the numbers of spirit sales and cocktail popularity, and the calculations have settled upon this base of agave-origin.
Mezcal has been getting more available over the last couple of years which is something that I can actually see even with my liquor stores collection. Whereas previously this bottle of Del Maguey Vida was my only mezcal option around last year, this time I was greeted with quite a number of bottles to choose from.
Having settled upon their prediction, the tipple tabloid went out to confirm their guesstimation by calling upon the bartenders of Brooklyn to see which mezcal drinks they're mixing up. The popular ones making a splash included, Uno Mas from Fandi Mata, Smoke and Fire from Vestry, and Calabrese from Cucina Alba and Alba Accanto.
Such specialty cocktails were beyond our home-bar budget, so we sampled a Paloma Negra cocktail to make our cocktail comparison.
From my experience, mezcal has a lovely smokiness that in this case pairs comfortably well with the coffee liqueur and grapefruit juice. I found that the grapefruit sweetened out the mezcal which were both tempered by that club soda, but not so far as to mute that smokiness.
How do I feel about mezcal as a contender for the Drink of Summer of 2023? Well, mezcal's smoky and makes for a comfy spritz which is pretty summery. However, that note on the smoke feels a little too on-the-nose. At the time of this comparison, Canada is still on fire. So, topical, but not quite hitting the full mark.
Paloma Negra
Paloma Negra
- 1 oz (30 ml) Coffee Liqueur (Mr. Black)
- 1 oz (30 ml) Mezcal (Del Maguey Vida)
- 1 oz (30 ml) Grapefruit Juice
- Top with Soda Water
Method: Build over Ice
Garnish: Grapefruit Peel
Credits: https://www.mrblack.co/row/cocktails/paloma-negra
Notes: Starring Mezcal, Wine Enthusiast’s projection for the what will be in the Top Drink of Summer 2023
Guided Recipe Video: Instagram
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