This is Not a Cucumber Mezcal Margarita

Confession: This drink was inspired entirely by cute things. I saw these ridiculous-but-also-kind-of-adorable cactus-stemmed margarita glasses on one of my many thrifting adventures this week, and decided I needed to make margaritas. But then I got home and thought: Wow, I’m glad those glasses didn’t break because the woman who rang me up did a really shitty job wrapping them. Then I thought: Haven’t I made enough margaritas lately? Plus, I remembered I had this cute lil’ bottle of cucumber soda in my fridge — which, yes, I bought mostly because it was cute but also because it sounded fucking refreshing on a hot day, okay? (So refreshing it’s been in the fridge for, like, two months.) And since I decidedly wasn’t making a margarita, I mixed that shit with mezcal, and lime juice, and a little Grand Marnier. So, yeah, some people might call it a Cucumber Mezcal Margarita, and honestly I don’t have a better name for it, so we’ll go with that.

Anyway, in addition to being refreshing and not at all too sweet, this drink is super easy — as long as you can find the Mr. Q Cucumber soda (no juicing cukes here!). My grocery store sells it by the bottle, and you can get an entire case on Evil Amazon. The best part? I learned totally on accident while mixing the second drink that one bottle is exactly enough for two cocktails!

This is Not a Cucumber Mezcal Margarita (or Maybe It Is)

INGREDIENTS

2 ounces mezcal (I used Del Maguey Vida )
1 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice
.5 ounce (1 tablespoon) Grand Marnier
3.5 ounces Mr. Q Cucumber soda

For the garnish:

Lime wedge
Sea salt
Cucumber slice

DIRECTIONS


Moisten the rim of a ridiculous thrifted cactus-stemmed margarita glass with a lime wedge, then gently roll the rim of the glass on a plate of sea salt and set aside.

Add the mezcal, lime juice, and Grand Marnier to a cocktail shaker with a handful of ice. Shake and strain into the salted glass. Add the cucumber soda (exactly half the bottle!), garnish with a slice of English cucumber grown in Mexico, and enjoy!

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