How to Drink Mezcal

• Use a jicarita if you have one to help open up the mezcal’s smoky aroma (use an old-fashioned glass if you don’t have a jicarita).
• You can drink mezcal straight, but garnish it with an orange wheel sprinkled with sal de gusano to enhance the texture, flavor, and aroma of the spirit.
• Replace the tequila in a margarita with mezcal for a smokier, fuller-bodied version of the drink.
• The Last of the Oaxacans is a signature mezcal cocktail; you’ll need mezcal, lime juice, luxardo maraschino, and green chartreuse to mix it up.

Drinking Mezcal Straight

Pour 2 fl oz (59 mL) of mezcal into a jicarita. The shape of this clay cup allows you to take in and explore mezcal’s aromas before taking a sip. Mezcal is a spirit with a spectrum of flavors including smoky, fruity, and vegetal, that are meant to be enjoyed slowly. If you are new to mezcal, it is recommended to start with a less expensive bottle to get familiar with the taste. If you don’t have a jicarita, you can drink mezcal from an old-fashioned glass. However, due to the design of the jicarita, you may not get the same experience from the aromas.

Garnish with an orange wheel sprinkled with sal de gusano. Sal de gusano is a mixture of salt and ground chile peppers. These spices are made to enhance the earthy undertones of mezcal. Authentic sal de gusano also contains ground, roasted worms from the agave plant. You can substitute sal de gusano with salt and ground dried chile peppers, but remember that the taste may vary slightly from the sal de gusano.

Enjoy it neat and at room temperature. The best way to drink mezcal straight is without ice. Serving mezcal straight at room temperature is the best way to experience its colorful flavors and aromas.

Take a sip and swish it around in your mouth. This will open your palate and allow your taste buds to adjust to the initial burning sensation. To experience more flavor, bite into the orange garnish right after taking a sip of mezcal. Mezcal is meant to be enjoyed slowly and should not be taken as a shot.

Serve mezcal with traditional Oaxacan tlayuda. Since mezcal is a clear spirit, it can be paired with a variety of dishes. However, to have an authentic experience with mezcal, you should pair it with Mexican dishes. Try to stick to dishes that contain meat, cheese, and chile to bring out mezcal’s extensive flavors. Other dishes to try with mezcal are pisole or quinoa salad.

Making a Mezcal Margarita

Combine 2 fl oz (59 mL) of mezcal in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. The stainless steel cocktail shaker should be filled ½ to ¾ of the way full with ice. This will help cool all of the ingredients before you serve your drink. There is no need to shake the mezcal and ice together yet. Mezcal has a distinct smoky flavor that pairs well with the citrus flavors in a margarita.

Add the lime juice and agave syrup to the shaker. Put 1 fl oz (30 mL) of lime juice and ⁄2 fl oz (15 mL) of agave syrup into the shaker with the mezcal. The lime juice and agave are used to enhance the smokiness of the mezcal and add a little sweetness to an otherwise dry cocktail. You can make agave syrup by dissolving light agave in an equal amount of hot or boiling water. If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, use a mason jar or a bottle with a screw-on lid.

Shake the mixture for 10-30 seconds. Place the cap of the shaker on tightly and shake the mixture vigorously. You want the ingredients to mix thoroughly and allow the ice to completely cool the liquids. Your cocktail is ready once a light frost has formed on the outside of the shaker.

Strain the mixture into a cocktail glass. The cocktail shaker has a built-in strainer in the lid. Hold the edges of the top down, and flip the shaker upside down to strain the cocktail into a glass. Any cocktail glass will work for this dry margarita. You can serve this cocktail straight up or on the rocks, whichever your prefer. This is a great drink to try if you are new to the world of mezcal. It allows you to experience its earthy and subtle tones in a familiar environment.

Garnish with a lime wheel and serve with tacos and guacamole. The flavors of your mezcal margarita go great with beef, fish, or carne asada tacos. Try adding some guacamole to enhance the spice and lime flavorings in the mezcal. You should try seasonings that have black pepper, chile, or lime in it to compliment your cocktail.

Creating a Last of the Oaxacans Cocktail

Chill your cocktail glass in the freezer. Place the glass in the freezer and wait for it to get to 32 °F (0 °C). To speed the process up slightly, you can dampen a paper towel with water and wrap it around the glass before placing it in the freezer. Chilling your glass will keep your cocktail cold longer and remove the possibility of your drink becoming watered down by melted ice.

Pour the mezcal and lime juice to a shaker with ice. Combine your ⁄4 fl oz (22 mL) of mezcal and ⁄4 fl oz (22 mL) of lime juice into a stainless steel shaker. After you add the mezcal and lime juice, fill the shaker 2/3 of the way full with ice. Use either a liquid measuring cup or a 2 fl oz (59 mL) shot glass to measure your liquids. If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, you can use a mason jar or a bottle that has a screw-on lid to mix your ingredients. Freshly squeezed lime juice will taste better but you can use pre-squeezed lime juice if you need to. You can opt to squeeze your own lime juice by juicing 1-2 limes.

Add in the luxardo maraschino and green chartreuse. The ⁄4 fl oz (22 mL) of maraschino and ⁄4 fl oz (22 mL) of chartreuse, should both be added to the shaker that contains the mezcal, lime juice, and ice. If you want your drink on the spicier side, you can add in a slice of a serrano pepper to increase the spiciness of the drink. Luxardo maraschino and green chartreuse can be found in your local liquor store. If you like your drinks to be on the spicier side, add in another pepper slice or a dash of spicy bitters.

Shake the contents for about 20 seconds. Make sure you shake vigorously to mix the liquids and their flavors thoroughly. You should continue shaking until the outside of the shaker begins to frost. The frost on the outside of the shaker should form in about 20 seconds of shaking.

Strain the contents into your chilled cocktail glass. For this particular drink, you should double strain your drink. Hold a fine-mesh strainer over your cocktail glass while you pour the beverage from the shaker. Double straining simply adds another filter to keep any bits of ingredients from making it into your drink. Double straining will remove any pulp or other pieces of ingredients that you want to keep out of your drink. If you don’t have a fine-mesh strainer, place piece of cheesecloth over the top of your glass while you slowly pour your cocktail.

Garnish with a pepper slice and serve with an Oaxacan mole sauce. The nice thing about using a chilled glass is that you don’t have to rush to finish your drink. As with most mezcal beverages, the Last of the Oaxacans is meant to be drunk slowly to savor every flavor. Due to the spiciness of this drink, it pairs nicely with beef, chicken, or fish smothered in a spicy red mole sauce. If heat isn’t your thing, leave off the pepper garnish.