The Key to Dolores’s White Negroni? Tepache.

The White Mezcal Negroni might be the bar world’s most popular riff-on-a-riff cocktail — swapping traditional Negroni ingredients (Campari and sweet vermouth) for their (not totally direct) blanc counterparts (Suze and Lillet), then subbing in smoky mezcal for the drink’s typical gin base. But at Brooklyn’s new Mexico City-inspired cocktail bar and cantina Dolores, beverage director Leanne Favre takes the riff game to the next level with her Tepache Negroni Blanco.

Favre, who previously worked at legendary Brooklyn bars including Clover Club and Leyenda, notes that many of her creations for the Dolores menu pay homage to her time at Leyenda, the recently shuttered cocktail haunt that was known for its pioneering focus on agave spirits.

“The original drink was created by Jesse Harris at Leyenda,” Favre shares. “It was a White Mezcal Negroni, but he infused the mezcal with pineapple skins.” At the time, the team was working on how to incorporate all parts of each ingredient throughout the cocktail-making process as a sustainability practice. The flavors from the pineapple skins played well with the Suze in the White Negroni, adding an extra layer of depth to the drink.

So when Favre set out to make a White Mezcal Negroni for Dolores, she remembered the old pineapple skin trick, but this time she thought of another way to incorporate the ingredient.

“When I brought this concept to Dolores I wanted to create a non-alcoholic option for my guests as well, so I started making a tepache with the pineapple skins,” she says. Favre takes the scraps left over from other cocktails made with the fruit (like her take on a frozen Painkiller) and mixes them with sugar, water, shredded ginger, and cinnamon bark. According to Favre, pineapple skins hold on to a lot of ambient yeast due to their texture, so left alone at the right temperature, this mixture starts to ferment.

Credit: Hannah Staab

The result is a sweet, spicy, and slightly fizzy beverage — similar to the traditional tepaches of Mexico — that can be enjoyed on its own as an NA drink option or used as a cocktail ingredient.

The Tepache Negroni Blanco includes 1 ounce each of Los Vecinos mezcal, Lustau dry vermouth, and Dolores’s house-made tepache. The tepache is chilled beforehand, and acts as the dilution component of the drink. “The tepache rounds out the edges,” Favre says. “It helps make all of the layers but just a bit more approachable.”

Favre also incorporates half an ounce of Suze and one teaspoon of Flor de Desierto Sotol. “Sotol just adds a little more character and vegetal quality,” she notes. “I was looking to add something a bit edgier to the drink.” Favre finishes off the build with half a teaspoon of cane syrup for some extra body and complexity.

Though the build is miles away from the traditional Negroni’s equal parts spec, the drink still carries the essence of the original Italian aperitivo cocktail with its welcoming, easygoing palate — just with a slightly smoky, tropical, vegetal twist.

“Dolores is a Mexico City-inspired bar, but I like to have a balanced menu that includes rum, whiskey, and vodka, too,” Favre says. “Even if the cocktail isn’t a traditional agave spirits drink, I try to bring in flavor profiles that relate back to Mexico.”

The article The Key to Dolores’s White Negroni? Tepache. appeared first on VinePair.