By Camper English

The Paloma

The Master Distiller of Tequila, El Tesoro, explained to me why mixology isn’t that big in his part of Mexico, “We don’t like to measure.”

He went on to describe how they make the Paloma, one of the most popular cocktails in Mexico. At large group tables in restaurants, it’s too much bother to individually order dozens of cocktails, so you buy large bottles of tequila and a bunch of small bottles of Coke and Squirt to mix in and share. You’ll remember Squirt soda from our youth—it’s a sweet grapefruit soda that you can still find in most grocery stores. Lime and salt are part of most Mexican food, so they’ll be on the table already. We’ll call for resposado (lightly aged) tequila in this recipe, as it is more popular in Mexico than blanco (un-aged) tequila, though it can really be made with either.

2 oz. (or so) of tequila
1-2 lime wedges
pinch of salt
Squirt soda

Fill a Collins glass (the tall skinny one) with ice. Add the tequila. Squeeze the juice of a lime wedge (or two) into the glass, then add a small pinch of salt to enhance taste. Fill the glass with Squirt soda, this will mix the other ingredients together as you pour it in. Salud!