LCBO Food & Drink Summer 2024

SERVE Use mezcal in Margarita and Ranch Water cocktails, or serve it traditionally (straight, with orange wedges and savoury salt for nibbling between sips). Bitter sweet cocktails complement mezcal’s modern classic Naked and Famous (named for a lyric in the 1996 Tricky song “Tricky Kid”), recipe p. 121. smoke: it shines in Negronis and the

TRY Amarás Espadin

Verde Mezcal (LCBO 666693, $75.45 ) has a lovely floral whiff with intensely smoky flavours, and the labels feature work by Mexican artists. Roasting the agaves in outdoor pits and fermenting them with wild ambient yeast gives Madre Mezcal (LCBO 19423, $90.15 ) authentically earthy, funky notes. Del Maguey made mezcal more accessible, releasing exquisite varieties from single Mexican villages. Del Maguey Vida Mezcal ( LCBO 25388, $65.95 ) is per fect for cocktails.

MORE TRENDING SUMMER SPIRITS

Try Soju, Korea’s vodka-like spirit, in lower-alcohol flavoured styles like Good Day Lychee Soju ( LCBO 36571, 360 mL, $10.90 ) or Pineapple Soju ( LCBO 36572, 360 mL, $10.90 ), both 13.5 per cent alcohol by volume (ABV). Chum Churum Saero ( LCBO 36451, 375 mL, $10.40 ) is a sugar free option and 16 per cent ABV. New-generation flavoured vodkas feature trending tastes and create easy Highballs when poured over crushed ice and topped with soda. Try deep purple AU Black Grape Vodka ( LCBO 37207, $59.95 ) and juicy Polar Ice Orange Blizzard Flavoured Vodka ( LCBO 36454, $32.15 ).

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PAIR Great with any

grilled food, mezcal natu

FOOD STYLING BY LINDSAY GUSCOTT; PROP STYLING BY ANDREA McCRINDLE

rally shines with Mexican cuisine.