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When The Smoke Cleared
Smoky, tangy and complex with layers of flavour, although happily mezcal dominates. (This cocktail also works well strained over ice in an old-fashioned...
Chris Dimal
26th April at 05:07
Nice, fruity and delicious. Could sit on the fence of 5* and 4.5*. Used Del Maguey Chichicapa which added even more layers of flavour, from savouriness and smokiness to sweetness and minerality.
25th April at 20:19
My new favourite way to drink mezcal, a real surprise hit. The pineapple tames the bitter aperitivo, which in turn takes the edge off the smoky mezcal. Couldn’t believe how much of the minerality and earthiness of the mezcal still shone through under the high notes of ginger and Aperol. Tasty!
25th April at 16:29
Very good. Didn’t have any ginger syrup so used some kings ginger and a little simple syrup. Fruity and smokey and refreshing all at once.
21st March at 00:40
Quite tasty. This assortment of ingredients has the effect of bringing out the flavor of the mezcal rather than masking it.
22nd October 2025 at 03:27
Well-balanced; agree that 1/4 oz is enough with thick, bottled ginger syrup. The Aperol ties everything together nicely. And this drink provides yet another use for our jar of candied ginger, which I'm trying to use while it's still soft enough to pierce with a cocktail sword. Distinct and tasty.
30th August 2025 at 20:16
No ginger syrup to be had.....did a ginger beer float instead. Dancing around the kitchen now...just saying!
19th January 2025 at 12:48
This was one of the best cocktails I have ever made or otherwise tasted. What still puzzles me is how I could not detect the pineapple when in every other drink that has pineapple juice its presence is clear. Not being a big fan of pineapple juice this was a pleasant surprise. And a mystery :D
Thanks again, Simon!
Thanks again, Simon!
27th June 2024 at 01:53
Bright. Refreshing. The smoke is of course interesting. I used bottled pineapple, but I think fresh pineapple (as suggested) would kick it over the top.
2nd February 2024 at 05:10
Beautifully complex. I had to sub 1/3oz campari, and 1/3oz ginger liquor, and I did 1oz canned pineapple juice as mine wasn't very flavorful. I'm shocked how well everything works together.
15th November 2023 at 04:25
I had to adjust the recipe, but i love the basis for this drink! My palette seems to be particularly sensitive to sours (I typically reduce the lemon or lime component by half). If you have similar tastes, try:
1.5 oz mezcal
.66 oz Aperol
.5 oz. ginger syrup
.25 oz. lime
.5 oz. pineapple juice
.25 oz. pisco (I find it a fantastic substitute for saline)
Any way you cut it: Carsten hit the nail on the head--this drink has everything!
1.5 oz mezcal
.66 oz Aperol
.5 oz. ginger syrup
.25 oz. lime
.5 oz. pineapple juice
.25 oz. pisco (I find it a fantastic substitute for saline)
Any way you cut it: Carsten hit the nail on the head--this drink has everything!
17th December 2023 at 11:00
I served it over ice and I think it needed the full volume of lime juice. Might be too sour for me served straight up.
Lovely drink though.
Lovely drink though.
23rd April 2023 at 07:44
I didn't have any ginger syrup so I used ginger liqueur. It didn't seem to hurt. Nice drink.
6th August 2022 at 17:04
I prefer this cocktail with more pineapple juice and more aperol, even though I like mezcal. May I suggest:
50 ml mezcal
35 ml pineapple juice
30 ml aperol
25 ml lime juice
1 cm2, 1 mm thick slice ginger cut into very small cubes
1/2 pitch salt
Love this cocktail that way.
50 ml mezcal
35 ml pineapple juice
30 ml aperol
25 ml lime juice
1 cm2, 1 mm thick slice ginger cut into very small cubes
1/2 pitch salt
Love this cocktail that way.
15th July 2022 at 02:41
This is a great cocktail and agree with Nicola ... Mexican Jungle Bird ... strange and delicious. Don't forget the salt, that really brings it home. I also made it more of a marg style with added mezcal and over rocks. The added mezcal was to account for any dilution from the ice. Otherwise followed the recipe. This might not be for everyone. The mezcal and Aperol both have a funky flavor but combined it all really comes together.
30th October 2021 at 16:20
A Mexican Jungle Bird, just as strange and just as delicious! I
15th July 2021 at 01:06
I really liked this, but had to tone down the lime juice a tad to allow the mezcal's smokiness to shine through.
18th April 2021 at 10:33
Fantastic recipe. Since there were no pineapple trees in sight, we used orange juice to make what we now call 'stop blowing smoke'.
19th February 2021 at 16:01
Might be a silly question, but what do I use to measure 2 drops with?
19th February 2021 at 17:50
Ideally, you'd use a dropper bottle with a pipette. We will be selling pre-mixed saline solution in such a bottle within a week or so.
17th February 2021 at 20:29
PS: Siete Misterios Doba-yej mezcal is a great alternative at a pretty good price. More agave-/fruit driven and maybe a bit less smoke than La Vida. Better value for the money I find.
17th February 2021 at 20:23
Thanks for this one! I had a pint of homemade ginger syrup in the freezer that I needed to find alternative uses for. Great drink! I wonder if Campari is not a tad too bitter for the perfect balance, so stick to Aperol in the recipe I f you have it. Still great with Campari, though.
31st January 2021 at 19:26
Very nice, though we subbed with Campari and changed the specs just a bit! We made this today for our dear chain-smoking downstairs neighbor in mind. Let's just say we prefer this cocktail to her non-stop cloud of smoke, and we do hope the smoke will clear.
20th August 2020 at 20:41
Made this with a grind of pink himalayan salt in place of the saline solution with good success, but I can see where it would be good to use the solution for a consistent approach.
21st August 2020 at 09:16
Better still make a saline solution using pink Himalayan salt.
8th July 2020 at 14:03
...Add some drops of Saline Solution, and its one of the very few coctails, ultimatively flavoured, offering like EVERYTHING humankind is able to taste;
Fruity from the Pineapple
Sour from the Lime
Spicy from the Ginger
Bitter from the Aperol
Smokey/Umami from the Mezcal
and Salty from the Saline Solution
If it wasn't clear till this point; I love this drink!
Fruity from the Pineapple
Sour from the Lime
Spicy from the Ginger
Bitter from the Aperol
Smokey/Umami from the Mezcal
and Salty from the Saline Solution
If it wasn't clear till this point; I love this drink!
9th July 2020 at 10:51
That's a great tip, thanks. I've added a couple of drops saline to the above recipe accordingly.
8th July 2020 at 14:04
cocktails*