Mexican wave
Mezcal, the smoky elder sibling of tequila, is having a moment as cocktails old and new, from the Margarita to the negroni, are getting a revamp. ‘it’s replacing the gin part of classic cocktails,’ explains Millie wilson, co-owner of british-mexican company tea & tequila trading, which introduced the brand Mezcal amores to the uk (it’s used in our rhubarita, right, devised by Fred campbell of london bar specialist cock & tail). Mezcal is extracted from the agave plant and has a unique savoury taste that makes it the perfect base for craft cocktails. ‘when people try mezcal, you see them wondering why they haven’t always been drinking it,’ says wilson. ‘it’s an unbelievably natural spirit with an exhilarating effect.’ More elating, perhaps, is the wondrous lack of hangover, attributed to spirit’s purity. and if that isn’t an excuse to drink, we don’t know what is. For the rhubarita recipe, see wallpaper.com teaandtequilatrading.com; mezcalamores.com. Right, bowl, £55; cocktail shaker, £110; tray, £150; ice bucket with tongs, £140; corkscrew, £42, all part of the Manhattan collection, by Georg Jensen. ‘Beak’ glass, £30 for two, by Tomas Kral, for Nude. Mezcal Amores Espadin, £53, from Fareham Wine Cellar