Better Cinco de Mayo Drinks to Have Out and at Home

Cinco de Mayo, in which we celebrate Mexico’s victory against the French at the Battle of Puebla, is this Thursday. Here in the U.S., it’s often commemorated with poorly made Margaritas. Break out of the trend this year, and do your celebrating with some tastier mixes that highlight spirits made in Mexico. We’ve three ideas if you’re heading out, and one recipe to make for at-home fiestas.

Pimmp’s Cup at Barrio: This Mexican- and Latin-inspired Capitol Hill spot has long been a place where you can get better drinks using tequilas and mezcals. But I suggest trying its variation on the classic English Pimm’s Cup. It uses Por Siempre Sotol – sotol being a spirit distilled from the desert plant of the same name, often referred to as the Desert Spoon, which here is harvested in the mountains in Chihuahua, Mexico. It’s mixed with Pimm’s #1 (a gin-based liqueur beloved especially in summertime), lemon, strawberry, and ginger beer. 

Arquero at the Saint: As the Saint’s a place with a subtitle of “Tequila Salvation,” you can guess that it’s going to be a sweet spot to have not only a wide range of tequilas to try and taste, but also some good drinks to try them in. While I wouldn’t shy away from tasting them straight, you shouldn’t miss the Arquero, which takes silver tequila and mingles it with cucumber and serrano pepper. It’s got a bit of a kick, but nothing too scary, and still brings a refreshing nature.

Fair Trade at Heartwood Provisions: The menu at this swell downtown spot changes fairly regularly, but hopefully this delight hasn’t trotted away into the sunset. It takes smokes tequila-cousin mezcal (crafted from the heart of the maguey plant, a type of agave), which has been infused with coffee beans, and partners it with ruby port, Ramazotti amaro (from the family of herbal Italian digestifs), and crème do cacao. A heady mixture, and one well worthy of toasting with.

The National Arms at Your House: Here’s a swell Mexican-inspired cocktail to make a home. It takes its name from a quote from General Ignacio Zaragoza, who commanded the forces at the battle of Puebla, and uses Corralejo Tequila Reposado as its base. This tequila’s made from 100 percent blue agave that’s been aged in American oak for at least four months, and has a memorable agave-spice-caramel flavor, providing the ideal base for this drink. 

Ice cubes

1-1/2 ounces Corralejo Tequila Reposado

3/4 ounce broVo Jammy sweet vermouth

1/2 ounce Ancho Reyes chile liqueur

2 dashes Scrappy’s orange bitters

Lemon twist

1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add the tequila, vermouth, juice, and bitters. Shake well.

2. Strain through a fine strainer into a cocktail glass. Garnish with the lemon twist.