Are you the type of person who only orders tequila or mezcal drinks on vacation, or is it your go-to drink any time of the year? I’m happy to drink tequila anytime—mezcal too—and I just love the way the flavors are reflective of their place of origin. Can’t you just taste the Sea of Cortez in salty tequila and picture the smoky goodness of mezcal distilling with every sip?
Check out this cocktail if you’re wild about tequila and mezcal like I am. The mix is amazing because there is nothing like the deep vegetal flavor of beets mixed with salty-smoky mezcal to make a drink that stands alone. Mezcal arrived in the Americas hundreds of years ago and is made from smoked and cooked or distilled agave plants. It originated in the Oaxaca region of Mexico.
This is an easy cocktail to create! It’s made more simple with beet juice (if you can find a good brand like Beet It juice), but roasting your own beets and combining that with the smoky roasted and smoked flavor of mezcal is magic and worth every minute of cook time. SALUD!
Mezcal Margarita
Serves 20 (in a 10 oz. rocks glass filled halfway with ice)
4 cups beet simple syrup or beet juice (see recipe below)
4 cups lime juice
6 cups mezcal
2 cups agave nectar
3 limes for garnish
Gather your ingredients.
Combine all of the ingredients in the order listed.
Shake and stir.
Pour over lots of ice with a lime for garnish and fresh flavor.
Beet Simple Syrup
12 cups water
1 1/2 pounds red beets, ends cut off, and diced into small cubes.*
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup agave nectar
Place all of the ingredients in a pan, bring the mixture to a boil, and then simmer covered until you have 4 cups of liquid. This should take around 45 minutes of simmering. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve; refrigerate if you are not ready to serve immediately.
*Note: You can remove the skin for a more intense beet flavor in the cocktail, but make sure you still have 1 ½ pounds of beets AFTER peeling! Also, beets that are more pink in color will give you a lovely pink syrup, and beets that have a yellow color mixed with red results in a sweeter syrup.
Allergen Note: This recipe is vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free.
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