Fittingly on Cinco de Mayo, let’s go to Puebla, Mexico, known for its ancho chiles and one of my all-time favorite spirits, Ancho Reyes. More importantly, Puebla is known for the Battle of Puebla. What is that, you ask? Well, it’s the reason for Cinco de Mayo. No, Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico's Independence Day. Rather it commemorates the Battle of Puebla on May 5th, 1862, the underdog Mexico victory over France. Napoleon III (not to be confused with Napoleon Bonaparte), sent thousands of troops to Mexico to invade it because of Mexico’s debt to France. However, greatly outnumbered, the Mexican military defeated the French.
In Mexico, it’s much more of a regional holiday, and isn’t the big nationwide Mexican celebration that some may think. Cinco de Mayo gained popularity in America several decades ago because to no one’s surprise, beverage companies commercialized it. To paraphrase what the owner of one of my local Mexican bars said, “It’s the quintessential white person holiday in America.”
So today we’re making Ancho Reyes cocktails, which are rooted in Puebla. In short, Ancho Reyes is a liqueur made from ancho and poblano chiles, dating back to a 1927 Puebla recipe. Today, I’d argue that it’s one of the most versatile spirits of a bar. Add a splash of Ancho Reyes to a Tequila Old Fashioned (instead of sugar) or to a margarita, mule or gimlet, and it completely changes the cocktail. Ancho Reyes makes two versions, an ancho chile liqueur and a Chile Poblano liqueur, dubbed Ancho Reyes Verde. The ancho chile liqueur is more rich, warming, and smoky, while Ancho Reyes Verde is more earthy and herbaceous.
The cocktail I’m highlighting in this post is what I’ve dubbed a Mexico Martini. I made a Tarragon Syrup, which you’d make by bringing a cup of water and a cup of sugar to a boil, and then removing from heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and infusing with a couple sprigs of tarragon for 30 minutes. I then added a couple bar spoons of tarragon syrup, 2 ounces of mezcal and 1 ounce of Ancho Reyes Verde to a mixing glass with ice, and stirred for 10 seconds. Strained into a coupe, and there you have a Mexico Martini. Salud!
