cocktail review no. 77 - Paleo Margarita

I don't know whether you guys are into the Paleo diet or not, but this is something my mum ran across in one of her cookbooks and forwarded to me when I called to remind my parents what my voice sounds like on Father's Day. We're getting close to the dog days of summer over here in K-Land and the days have turned still, sultry, and moist. Now's the time to start trotting out the cold, refreshing highballs with light-colored liquors, fruity liqueurs, and citrus juices: the Moscow Mule, the Gimlet, the Bullfrog and the Cactus Bite. All are cool and delicious, but they have one major drawback—they're all sickeningly sweet. If you're like me and you're tired of swallowing eight tablespoons of sugar in your Piña Colada, your Zombie, your Tidal Wave, or your Planter's Punch, then get with the program and have a Paleo cocktail. This one. 

•  squeeze the juice from half a lime into the bottom of a rocks glass
•  add 2 shots of tequila and a measure of club soda
•  pour the mixture into cocktail glass and sip it slowly

I'll tell you what my parents told me: do not judge this drink on the first glass. Have one on Friday night and another on Saturday night and then pass judgment. Why? Well, as you may be able to tell from the ingredients, this tipple is tart. Lip-puckeringly, tongue-stingingly, tooth-burningly, uvula-curdlingly sour. There's not an atom of sugar in it. It's kind of like the rickey cocktail, but with a higher proportion of citrus juice and less club soda. Most drinks with lime or lemon juice have some kind of sweet additive to balance the sourness out (like the Sidecar, for example). Not so with this libation. It'll make your scalp crawl. 

But as you nurse your second glass, sitting and sweating on your porch or veranda or balcony and watching the sinking sun and the reddening clouds while the gnats buzz about your ears and the day's oppressive heat begins to abdicate its tyrannical reign, you'll start liking this drink. It's got everything you need: the spicy heat of tequila, the pleasant fizz of club soda, and the nostril-wrinkling nip of lime. Perfect for relaxing after a long day's exertions or swapping war stories with the boys at the cabana. 

Or impressing the discerning Paleolithic woman.