Drinks

Mezcal Mule

Name: Mezcal Mule
Ingredients: 3 cucumber slices (plus 1 for garnish); ½ oz. agave nectar; 1½ oz. mezcal (Cooper recommends Del Maguey Vida Single Village Mezcal); 1 oz. ginger beer; ¾ oz. freshly squeezed lime juice; ¾ oz. passion fruit puree (Cooper recommends Boiron brand); 1 piece candied ginger, for garnish; 1 pinch ground chile, for garnish

Passionfruit for sweet, chile for heat, and mezcal for the X factor

By CJ Lotz Diego

June 8, 2018

Photo: Kelly Puleio

“The Mezcal Mule is designed to hit every note—sweet, tart, floral, hot, smoky,” writes Ron Cooper in his new book, Finding Mezcal: A Journey into the Liquid Soul of Mexico. (It’s part of our June reading list). “It best achieves this with the floral, fruity, and spiced Vida Single Village Mezcal.” Use his recommendation or your favorite mezcal.

Ingredients

- 3 cucumber slices (plus 1 for garnish)
- ½ oz. agave nectar
- 1½ oz. mezcal (Cooper recommends Del Maguey Vida Single Village Mezcal)
- 1 oz. ginger beer
- ¾ oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
- ¾ oz. passion fruit puree (Cooper recommends Boiron brand)
- 1 piece candied ginger, for garnish
- 1 pinch ground chile, for garnish

Preparation

Muddle the 3 cucumber slices and agave nectar in a cocktail shaker, and then add all the remaining ingredients, except the garnishes.
Shake with ice, then fine-strain into a chilled rocks glass over ice.
Garnish with a piece of candied ginger and a slice of cucumber on a toothpick and a pinch of ground chile.

Recipe excerpted with permission from Finding Mezcal: A Journey into the Liquid Soul of Mexico, by Ron Cooper

CJ Lotz Diego is Garden & Gun’s senior editor. A staffer since 2013, she wrote G&G’s bestselling Bless Your Heart trivia game, edits the Due South travel section, and covers gardens, books, and art. Originally from Eureka, Missouri, she graduated from Indiana University and now lives in Charleston, South Carolina, where she tends a downtown pocket garden with her florist husband, Max.