Cocktail recipes with Aperol and Mezcal

About the ingredients

• Mezcal: Mezcal, sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave. The word mezcal comes from Nahuatl mexcalli, which means "oven-cooked agave", from metl and ixcalli. Traditionally the word "mezcal" has been used generally in Mexico for all agave spirits and it continues to be used for many agave spirits whether these spirits have been legally certified as "mezcal" or not, and it is also considered a drink of artisan origin. Agaves or magueys are endemic to the Americas and found globally as ornamental plants. More than 70% of mezcal is made in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, but is now produced and commercialized throughout Mexico for the national and international market. A saying attributed to Oaxaca regarding the drink is: "Para todo mal, mezcal, y para todo bien, también; y si no hay remedio litro y medio" ("For all bad, mezcal, and for all good, as well; and if there is no remedy, liter and a half"). Native fermented drinks from maguey plant, such as pulque, existed before the arrival of the Spanish. The origin of mezcal is tied to the introduction of distillation technology from Spanish immigrants to Nueva Galicia (present-day Aguascalientes, Colima, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Nayarit, and Zacatecas) in the late 16th century.
• Aperol: Aperol is an Italian bitter apéritif made of gentian, rhubarb and cinchona, among other ingredients. It has a vibrant orange hue. Its name comes from apero, a French slang word for apéritif. Aperol was originally created in 1919 by Luigi and Silvio Barbieri after seven years of experimentation. It did not become widely popular until after World War II. It was first produced by the Barbieri company, based in Padua, but is now produced by the Campari Group. Although it tastes and smells much like Campari, Aperol has an alcohol content of 11%—less than half that of Campari. They have the same sugar content, and Aperol is less bitter in taste. Campari is also much darker in color. Aperol sold in Germany had an alcohol content of 15% for some time to avoid German container deposit legislation regulations, but since 2021, it has been sold with an alcohol content of 11%.