Category: mezcal

rum

Happiness in Liquid Form | An Earthy Tiki Cocktail Recipe Inspired by Alfie Templeman’s Hit Song

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The Happiness in Liquid Form cocktail recipe is the perfect balance of fruity and earthy and it practically demands to be sipped on outside in the summer sun. It combines zesty lime, sweet pineapple, tropical passionfruit, and spicy ginger with smoky mezcal and aged rum.

Looking for the perfect summer cocktail recipe? Happiness in Liquid Form is the perfect balance of fruity and earthy and it practically demands to be sipped on outside in the summer sun. Read on to hear more about the inspiration behind this drink.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

If you didn’t know, Instagram is poppin’ with cocktail recipes. Before starting Girl & Tonic, I was unaware that such a world existed. At first, I was worried when I realized there were so many other cocktail accounts on IG. I mean… competition. Lots of it. But I soon learned that the #drinkstagram community is incredibly supportive. I’ve “met” some truly amazing people on it.

Some of those awesome people and I are in a group DM where were ask for advice on recipes, photography, and share photos of our pets and midcentury furniture (these are my people, y’all!). One of them, @soundtrackmydrink, came up with the idea to do a song swap– each of us picked a song and then that song was secretly given to another member of the group. The task was then to create a cocktail based on that song. Brilliant, yes? Also a great test of our creativity.

I was given @turnstylepoet‘s song of choice: Happiness in Liquid Form by Alfie Templeman. As soon as I heard the beat, I knew I had to go the tiki route. I mean, if you listen to the song, it sounds like summer.

The Happiness in Liquid Form cocktail recipe is the perfect balance of fruity and earthy and it practically demands to be sipped on outside in the summer sun. It combines zesty lime, sweet pineapple, tropical passionfruit, and spicy ginger with smoky mezcal and aged rum.

The beat of the song is peppy. It makes you want to dance or at the very least, drive with the windows down. A quintessential summer song, imo.

To match the summer disco vibes in Happiness in Liquid Form, I knew I wanted to use some traditional tiki flavors. Rum. Pineapple. Passionfruit. Lime. I also wanted to add a little earthiness to the mix since the song almost demands to be listened to outside with grass beneath your feet and the sun warming your skin. Enter smoky mezcal and the hemp bitters.

Beneath the upbeat tempo are some tortured lyrics, though. Alfie can’t figure out why his feelings are unrequited. To match his bitterness and cynicism, I added the ginger. It’s an underlying spiciness that doesn’t compete with the rest of the drink’s bright summer flavors. But it’s there.

Finally, to complete this Happiness in Liquid Form cocktail recipe, I added a spritz of peppermint hydrosol to match the initial happy-go-lucky mood of the song.

I realize this drink seems a little more complex than some of my recipes in the past, but it’s really not difficult to make. You can skip the peppermint hydrosol and the hemp bitters and still have a truly tasty drink. If you can’t find a pineapple-ginger juice blend, simply muddle a slice or two of fresh ginger in your cocktail shaker. Or add half a teaspoon of ginger paste.

The Happiness in Liquid Form cocktail recipe is the perfect balance of fruity and earthy and it practically demands to be sipped on outside in the summer sun. It combines zesty lime, sweet pineapple, tropical passionfruit, and spicy ginger with smoky mezcal and aged rum.

If you make this Happiness in Liquid Form cocktail recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram. I love seeing y’all’s reshakes! And stay tuned for next month’s newsletter because I’ll be including a list of songs and recipes from the other #drinkstagrammers who participated in this fun challenge!

Ingredients for the Happiness in Liquid Form Cocktail Recipe

  • 1 oz aged rum
  • 1/2 oz mezcal
  • 3/4 oz pineapple-ginger juice*
  • 1/2 oz lime juice, freshly squeezed
  • 3/4 oz passionfruit syrup**
  • 2 drops hemp bitters
  • 2 dashes Angostura aromatic bitters
  • 1 spritz of peppermint hydrosol, optional

*If you can’t find a pineapple-ginger juice blend, simply muddle a slice or two of fresh ginger in your cocktail shaker. Or add half a teaspoon of ginger paste.

**My passionfruit syrup is quite sweet but other brands can lean more tart. Adjust this amount to your liking.

How to Make the Happiness in Liquid Form Cocktail

Add all of the ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, about 20 seconds. Strain into a glass that’s filled with crushed ice. Spritz the glass with peppermint hydrosol. Garnish with a lime wheel and pineapple leaves.

Happiness in Liquid Form – An Earthy Tiki Cocktail Recipe

Happiness in Liquid Form is the perfect balance of fruity and earthy and it practically demands to be sipped on outside in the summer sun. It combines zesty lime, sweet pineapple, tropical passionfruit, and spicy ginger with smoky mezcal and aged rum.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Equipment

  • cocktail shaker

Ingredients
  

  • 1 oz aged rum
  • ½ oz mezcal
  • ¾ oz pineapple-ginger juice*
  • ½ oz lime juice
  • ¾ oz passion fruit syrup**
  • 2 drops hemp bitters
  • 2 dashes Angostura aromatic bitters
  • 1 spritz peppermint hydrosol (optional)

Instructions
 

  • Add all of the ingredients except the peppermint hydrosol to a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
  • Shake well, about 20 seconds.
  • Strain into a glass that's filled with crushed ice.
  • *If you can't find a pineapple-ginger juice blend, simply muddle a slice or two of fresh ginger in your cocktail shaker. Or add half a teaspoon of ginger paste.
    **My passionfruit syrup is quite sweet but other brands can lean more tart. Adjust this amount to your liking.
  • Garnish with a lime wheel and pineapple leaves.

Notes

*If you can’t find a pineapple-ginger juice blend, simply muddle a slice or two of fresh ginger in your cocktail shaker. Or add half a teaspoon of ginger paste.
**The passionfruit syrup I have is quite sweet but other brands can lean more tart. Adjust this amount to your liking.
Keyword aged rum, ginger, hemp bitters, lime, lime juice, mezcal, passion fruit syrup, pineapple juice, pineapple-ginger juice

Looking for some other summery cocktail recipes? Check these out:

  • Mezcal in Maui – another cocktail recipe with sweet pineapple juice and smoky mezcal
  • Summer Sipper – green tea, cucumber, & mint make for a very refreshing sip
  • Spicy Mango – a two-ingredient drink with sherbet & champagne
  • Isla del Sol – an irresistable passionfruit Paloma recipe

mezcal

Mezcal in Maui | The Best Recipe for People Who Love Tropical and Smoky Cocktails

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The Mezcal in Maui is a tropical take on a mezcal margarita. If you love tiki drinks and smoky cocktails, this is the recipe for you.

When I first saw the recipe for this Mezcal in Maui cocktail on Instagram, I got EXCITED. Truly, my heart skipped a little. A tropical AND smoky drink? With mezcal??! YES PLZ. But then my heart broke a little when I looked at the recipe and realized I needed lime juice. If you saw my last post, you read about my citrus plight. There was no way I was going to attempt to make the Mezcal in Maui without lime juice. I knew I would need to do this cocktail recipe justice.

And boy, am I glad I waited. This recipe is incredible.

The Mezcal in Maui was created by Casey of City Gal Cocktails. You can find more amazing recipes on her Instagram page. (Seriously, go give her a follow right now and then come back!) As a cocktail blogger, a loooot of my followers on Instagram are fellow cocktail aficionados. The #drinkstagram community is really supportive and inspiring but there are a handful of other cocktail creators that really stand out. Casey’s one of them.

The Mezcal in Maui is a tropical take on a mezcal margarita. If you love tiki drinks and smoky cocktails, this is the recipe for you.

I ended up tweaking Casey’s original recipe just a tad by lowering the amount of pineapple juice and added some Demerara syrup. Demerara syrup is used in some tiki cocktails so it seemed a fitting choice for this tropical spin on a mezcal margarita. Adding the sweet syrup seems to enhance the smokiness and smoothing out the edges of the pineapple juice. If you don’t have access to Demerara sugar or turbinado sugar to make the Demerara syrup, regular simple syrup will work just fine.

If you’re unfamiliar with what mezcal is, I’ll give you as brief of an explanation as possible. Mezcal is a liquor distilled from agave. Sound familiar? Tequila is distilled from agave, too, only for it to be considered “tequila” is must be distilled from blue agave.

Mezcal is also cooked and distilled much differently than tequila, which is why there is such a big taste distinction between the two liquors. Traditionally, tequila is steamed and then distilled in copper pots, which is why it tastes crisp and bright. Mezcal, on the other hand, is usually cooked in lava-rock-lined pits with charcoal and wood before being distilled in clay pots. All those earthy elements lend a smoky flavor that is unlike any other liquor out there.

The Mezcal in Maui is a tropical take on a mezcal margarita. If you love tiki drinks and smoky cocktails, this is the recipe for you.

Smoky cocktails are kind of a big trend right now. Actually smoky anything is popular. I’ve seen recipes for smoked ice cream, smoked queso (WHAAAT!), smoked salt, and the list goes on. There are a lot of ways to achieve a smoke flavor in cocktails, including smoke guns (hi Santa), lapsang souchong tea, and using grilled or charred garnishes.

Another way to achieve a smoky cocktail is to use mezcal. If you want just a touch of smoky essence, use a splash mezcal in one of your favorite tequila or vodka recipes. A Moscow Mule with 1/4 oz of mezcal would be a great way to incorporate a hint of smoke without it being overpowering.

If you’re interested in trying out another smoky cocktail with mezcal, check out the Cero Miedo. I find myself craving its smoky/spicy/sweet flavor regularly on these hot Texas evenings. It’s honestly SO good & is probably the cocktail recipe I’m the proudest of. No horn-tooting happening over here.

The Mezcal in Maui is a tropical take on a mezcal margarita. If you love tiki drinks and smoky cocktails, this is the recipe for you.

Have you ever made a cocktail with mezcal? If so, what’s your favorite recipe? Leave me a comment down below so I can feature more smoky cocktails!

Ingredients for a Mezcal in Maui

  • 1 1/2 oz mezcal
  • 1/2 oz triple sec
  • 2 oz pineapple juice
  • 1 oz lime juice
  • 1/4 oz Demerara syrup or simple syrup
  • mint & lime wheel for garnish

How to Make a Mezcal in Maui

Add the mezcal, triple sec, pineapple juice, lime juice, and Demerara syrup to a shaker filled with ice. Shake well. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice. Garnish with the lime wheel and mint.

Mezcal in Maui

A tropical take on a mezcal margarita. If you love smoky cocktails, you'll love the Mezcal in Maui.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 3 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz mezcal
  • ½ oz triple sec/orange liqueur
  • 2 oz pineapple juice
  • ¾ oz lime juice
  • ¼ oz Demerara syrup*
  • lime wheel & mint for garnish

Instructions
 

  • Add the mezcal, triple sec, pineapple juice, lime juice, and Demerara syrup to a shaker filled with ice.
  • Shake well.
  • Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice.
  • Garnish with the lime wheel and mint.

Notes

*You can find the easy recipe for Demerara syrup here OR you can use simple syrup instead..
Keyword demerara syrup, lime, lime juice, mezcal, orange liqueur, pineapple juice

Be sure to tag me on Instagram (@girlandtonic_) if you make this tropical and smoky cocktail.

tequila

Cero Miedo | A Sweet & Spicy Cocktail

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The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe named after the motto of AEW tag team Lucha Bros. It's made with tequila, mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. | A part of Girl and Tonic's AEW cocktail series.

I’ve had the idea for this Cero Miedo cocktail for months now. The moment I thought of the idea to create an AEW cocktail series, I knew I wanted to create this drink. In case you didn’t bear witness to my confession in my Orange Cassidy post, I am an unashamed professional wrestling fan.

I *freakin’* love All Elite Wrestling. If you want to know why or how I got into professional wrestling, go check out that Orange Cassidy recipe. A lot has changed in these last several weeks (6? 7??) of COVID quarantine but AEW is STILL putting out LIVE content every week. Granted, they have no live audience which changes the dynamics of the matches, but it’s something I’m able to look forward to every week. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are wrestling nights at our house.

The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe named after the motto of AEW tag team Lucha Bros. It's made with tequila, mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. | A part of Girl and Tonic's AEW cocktail series.

Now, about the name of this cocktail. Cero Miedo means “zero fear” in Spanish. This is the motto for the Lucha Bros, a tag team on the AEW roster. This tag team is made up of Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix and they *might* be my favorite tag team. I love Pentagon’s personality in the ring and Fenix is one of the most agile, athletic wrestlers in the league. They make a great tag team. Check out this highlight reel of their match against Private Party. The Lucha Bros are the ones in the masks. Watch for their signature “cero miedo” hand sign at the end of the clip:

Okay, now that I’ve told you about the drink name, it’s time to talk about the drink. I knew that for a drink based on the Lucha Bros, it needed to be spicy and a bit smoky. They are, after all, some of the “bad guys” in the league. And since they’re both from Mexico City, tequila and mezcal seemed a perfect base.

I’m sure you’re all familiar with tequila, but some of you might not know what mezcal is. Mezcal is a liquor that is distilled from any type of agave plant, while tequila is a liquor that’s distilled specifically from blue agave.

The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe named after the motto of AEW tag team Lucha Bros. It's made with tequila, mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. | A part of Girl and Tonic's AEW cocktail series.

Another distinction between mezcal and tequila is the cooking and distillation process. Tequila is usually steamed and mezcal is usually cooked in lava-rock-lined pits with charcoal and wood. Tequila is distilled in copper pots and mezcal is usually distilled in clay pots. As you can imagine, these different methods heavily influence the final products. Mezcal typically has a distinctive smoky, earthy flavor (thanks to those clay pots and earthen pits).

Both tequila and mezcal can be produced and aged differently so even within those categories, there is a lot of room for diversity. I’m no expert when it comes to either, so if you’re intrigued, I encourage you to go learn some more & report back to me.

To summarize, all tequila falls under the mezcal category. But not all mezcal is tequila. It’s kinda like the whiskey/bourbon thing. Bourbon is a type of whiskey, but not all whiskeys are bourbons. Ya follow?

The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe made with tequila, Monte Albar mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, Mi HEB Tienda guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. | A part of Girl and Tonic's AEW cocktail series.

I’ve found that in my area, mezcal can be hard to come by. Often times, the only mezcal available is the one seen in my pictures. It’s pretty infamous because it has a little dried worm inside. This is NOT the best mezcal brand out there and if you can find a different bottle of mezcal, grab that one. It’s not that this one is bad, but it’s probably not the best showcase of what mezcal has to offer.

Can’t find mezcal? You can definitely sub in extra tequila. Or try using 1 ounce of tequila blanco and 1 ounce of tequila reposado. You’ll miss out on the smokiness but the end result will still be delicious.

And if you’re wondering where to find guava nectar or guava juice, try looking in the international food or drink aisle at your grocery store. I got this can of guava nectar from H-E-B, a Texas grocery store chain. Or you can always turn to the ever-reliable Amazon.

You can find the jalapeño basil simple syrup recipe here.

The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe made with tequila, Monte Albar mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, Mi HEB Tienda guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. | A part of Girl and Tonic's AEW cocktail series.

And just in case you’re wondering what type of animal skulls these are, they’re a coyote and a deer. My winding country road sees its fair share of roadkill and anytime something gets hit close to my house, I’m equal parts sad and excited. Sad, because I love animals. But excited because that means I’ll get to look at all the cool bones once nature’s decomposers do their work.

I really love this sweet, spicy, and smoky Cero Miedo cocktail. I hope you do, too! If you take a crack at it, be sure to tag me on social media! (Instagram: girlandtonic_ Twitter: @girlandtonic or on Facebook. )

The Cero Miedo is a spicy, sweet, and smoky cocktail. It's a Girl and Tonic original recipe made with tequila, mezcal, jalapeño basil simple syrup, guava nectar, lime, and chili powder. It's perfect for Cinco de Mayo and summer.

The Ingredients for a Cero Miedo

  • 1 oz tequila blanco
  • 1 oz mezcal
  • 3/4 oz guava nectar
  • 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
  • 1/4 oz jalapeño basil simple syrup
  • 2-3 pinches of chili powder (DON’T SKIP THIS! I used Kashmiri chili powder but any will do)
  • splash of club soda
  • optional– a few slices of jalapeño for muddling

How to Make a Cero Miedo

Add all of the ingredients, except the club soda, into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, 30-45 seconds. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice. Leave about an inch of room at the top so you can pour the club soda in. Guava nectar can be a little heavy so having the bubbles of the club soda lightens it a bit. Garnish with another dash of chili powder, a jalapeño slice, and a sprig of basil.

If you want your cocktail extra spicy, add a couple slices of jalapeño to the bottom of a cocktail shaker before anything else. Add the tequila and muddle with a muddler or a long spoon. Then add the remaining ingredients and follow the above instructions.