New Cocktails: Flor del Agavo

Just a little follow-up to my post about Solear manzanilla sherry. This time I wanted to make a sour, but the trick was how to make it without covering up the wonderful flavors of the sherry. Thankfully, the lemon/grapefruit combo seems to work beautifully, though I did have to use a much higher ratio of spirits:juice than normal to keep things balanced.


Flor del Agavo
1.5 oz blanco tequila (Corralejo)
0.5 oz manzanilla sherry
0.25 oz grapefruit juice
0.375 oz honey syrup
3 dashes orange bitters (Regan's #6)

Combine all ingredients, stir with ice for 15 seconds, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The nose contains earthy, vegetal agave, savory sherry, a slight mineral tang, along with a hint of bitter orange and grapefruit. The sip begins with tequila and honey up front, followed by the sherry mid-palate, then lemony grapefruit, and fading into bitter orange

The agave and sherry pair extremely well, with the vegetal agave of the tequila and the briny olive of the sherry playing off of each other. The grapefruit provides a bridge between the spirits and the lemon juice, while the honey tempers the drink and is kept in check by the orange bitters.

I've also made this with simple syrup instead of honey. This version emphasizes the tequila, whereas the simple syrup version emphasizes the sherry. Pick whichever sounds better to you or, you know, try both and see which actually tastes better to you.