El Pistolero is the latest cocktail added to the permanent menu at the restaurant created by chef Xiomara Márquez, and it tells a personal story through mezcal and wine.
Mezcal and wine: two worlds that most people wouldn't think to mix. Yet mixologist Luis Nieves, of the restaurant La Pícara by Chef Xiomy in San Juan, found a way to combine both in a cocktail that evokes tradition and familiarity: El Pistolero.
The cocktail is a tribute to his roots: it brings together his relationship with his mother through wine and his preferred spirit, mezcal.
El Pistolero is also a personal reference, as it is a nickname he was jokingly given within the bartending community.
Between rounds, he got into the habit of making hand gestures like shooting a gun, and "within the comedy of the industry, I picked up that name. And, well, it's the name I give the (cocktail)."
El Pistolero came about while Nieves was developing an original creation for his participation as a finalist in the Bartist Bar Skills Challenge last year, inspired by a New York Sour, a classic that combines whiskey and wine.
📝 The recipe's building blocks
In addition to the main ingredients, the recipe calls for a clarified lime base, simple syrup and spice and allspice bitters. For the floating wine layer, he uses cabernet "since technically it's one of my mom's favorite grapes," he added.
"Every time one (Pistolero) goes out, it's like the espresso martini effect: once one goes out, thirty go out," he said of the drink's success, which was the last to be added to La Pícara's permanent menu.
✨ Perfect pairing with…
The balanced combination of spirit and wine "works for hangovers and also works with a red cut," Nieves said.
From La Pícara's menu, he suggests pairing it with the cubanito rolls, an interpretation of the classic sandwich; the edible spoon, topped with tuna tartar; and, from the main courses, the filet mignon with mushroom cream.
If you're looking for a cocktail with character and a story behind it, El Pistolero at La Pícara is a reliable choice. As Nieves puts it, "it's a different cocktail, it tastes better than it sounds."
This content was translated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
