This savory margarita lives up to its name: Smoky mezcal meets bright lemon and honey, with black pepper bringing gentle heat and briny Castelvetrano olives providing the salty finish. A drop of toasted sesame oil is optional, but adds another layer of nutty, roasty complexity.
Recipe information
Ingredients
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Lemon wedge
2
brined green olives, such as Castelvetrano
1
oz. mezcal
1
oz. Cointreau
1
oz. fresh lemon juice
1
tsp. honey
2
dashes orange bitters
Toasted sesame oil, for drizzling (optional)
Need to make a substitution?
Preparation
-
Step 1
Pour some kosher salt onto a small plate; add a few cranks of black pepper and stir to combine. Rub lemon wedge lightly over rim of a rocks glass (reserve lemon wedge for garnish). Press rim of glass into salt-and-pepper mixture. Fill glass with coarsely cracked large ice cubes. Thread olives and lemon wedge onto a skewer; set aside.
Step 2
Combine 1 oz. mezcal, 1 oz. Cointreau, 1 oz. fresh lemon juice, 1 tsp. honey, and 2 dashes orange bitters in a cocktail shaker; season with 3 cranks of black pepper. Fill shaker with ice and shake vigorously until outside of shaker is very cold and frosty, 30 seconds. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into prepared glass. Season with a crank of black pepper and drizzle with toasted sesame oil (if using). Garnish with reserved skewer.
