Easy Mezcal Cocktail (3 Ingredients)

An easy Mezcal cocktail made with just 3 ingredients including pineapple juice and carbonated grapefruit soda. It’s a delicious twist on a margarita or a mezcal sour. Add the seasoned salt rim for a festive party drink any time.

two glasses with peach colored drinks garnished with grapefruit slices and pineapple leaves, on gray tray.

Have you heard about the latest trend in spirits? Say hello to Mezcal, Tequila’s smoky-flavored cousin. This is NOT your frat-party-worm-in-the-bottle Mezcal, though!

Mezcal, Grapefruit & Pineapple

This drink recipe has amazing depth of flavor with sweet pineapple juice, pink grapefruit soda, and smoky Mezcal liquor. It’s sweet, it’s sour, it’s smoky, and it’s sensational!

I love the effervescence the sparkling grapefruit gives, and it’s so refreshing overall. It’s one of the best mezcal cocktails I’ve had.

Why You’ll Love It

  • This cocktail has a slightly sweet, smoky, and citrus flavor profile that’s a party favorite!
  • It’s similar to a margarita in the way it has a citrusy, not-too-sweet taste. It’s the kind of drink you want for a fiesta happy hour, a cocktail party, or for sipping by the pool.
  • The balance of flavors from the sweet pineapple, and tart pink grapefruit marries beautifully with the smokiness of the Mezcal.

RELATED: If you love pineapple drinks, you’ll love my pineapple martini recipe.

two glasses with peach colored drinks garnished with grapefruit slices and pineapple leaves, on gray tray.

What Is Mezcal?

Mezcal has become popular recently for it’s small batch, high quality, complex flavor that can be sipped and savored over ice, or mixed into sophisticated cocktails. It comes from Mexico, of course, so it makes fantastic Mexican cocktails for a Cinco de Mayo party or Mexican theme dinner party

Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of this liquor is its smoky flavor. That idea appealed to me very much since I don’t tend to drink overly sweet or “girly” cocktails. 

bottle of mezcal on counter with pineapple juice and grapefruit juice.

3 Ingredients

  • Mezcal. Don’t waste your money or taste buds on “cheap” mezcal with the worm (larvae actually) floating in the bottom. Just like tequila, you want a good quality bottle of Mezcal that you can also sip on. My favorite brand is Los Amantes Joven. I picked it up based on it’s very high rating – “an example of the very best in its class” – and it does not disappoint!
  • Carbonated grapefruit soda. There are many different brands you can find in the soda aisle, and the international food section has specific Mexican brand sodas too.
  • Pineapple juice. Regular canned 100% pineapple juice is what you need. As a home mixologist I always keep a pack of small cans on hand for just such occasions.

If you want to add the seasoned salt rim you’ll need salt, sugar and chili powder, plus fresh lime wedges or juice.

How to Make It

When I saw Pati Jinich’s demonstration of a spinning top cocktail, I knew I wanted to create my own version. I tweaked a few of the steps and came up with this “spin” on the Spinning Top recipe.

  1. Start by combining the spicy rim salt. It adds so much to the cocktail experience. Add lime juice to a shallow bowl or saucer; add salt mixture in a separate shallow dish. Dip the rim of a glass into lime juice and then into the salt mix.
  2. Add ice to the glass and mix in the drink ingredients.
  3. Garnish with a slice of grapefruit, fresh pineapple leaves, or sprig of thyme. Sip and enjoy.
two glasses with peach colored drinks garnished with grapefruit slices and pineapple leaves, on gray tray.

More Mezcal Cocktails

If you appreciate the high quality and unique flavor of this liquor, you’re definitely going to want to check out these other recipes.

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two glasses with peach colored drinks garnished with grapefruit slices and pineapple leaves, on gray tray.

Mezcal Cocktail with Grapefruit & Pineapple

Yield: 1 cocktail
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

This Mezcal cocktail is similar to a margarita but is made with pink grapefruit soda for a fizzy twist of flavor. It's a great combination of sweet and sour that's perfect for a party or happy hour.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 ounces Mezcal liquor
  • 3 ounces pink grapefruit soda (it's carbonated)
  • 1 ounce pineapple juice

Salt Rim Mix

  • 1 Tablespoon salt
  • 1 Tablespoon brown sugar or raw sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • 2 Tablespoons lime juice

Instructions

  1. Prepare salt rim mixture by combining equal parts (or to your taste) of each of the spices. Dip rim of glass in lime juice and then into salt mixture.
  2. Let glass rest upside down for a couple of minutes to set.
  3. Combine cocktail ingredients over ice and pour into rimmed glass.
  4. Garnish with a sprig of thyme if you like.

Notes

Don’t skip on the flavorful salt mixture. It really adds an interesting twist to the classic salt rim.

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