Mezmeretto

Mezmeretto

Mezcal, amaretto, yellow chartreuse, lemon garnish

Source:

DBGB Kitchen and Bar, NYC

The quick take: 

Sweet, almond-taste dominates, mezcal faded

The slow take:

 

After being served the close cousin of this drink, a mezcal-yellow chartreuse-dolin blanc version of “All bets are off” that was not half bad, this lackluster rendition of an amaretto sour left us wanting for something that would better complement the smokiness of mezcal, not smother it with kindness. This is the nutella-pasta error of drink mixing–two great spirits a nectar do not make, except if pure glucose is what you’re looking for. Most of what you will taste here is the amaretto, complemented by some herb-and-honey touches from the yellow chartreuse. Vanished is the “sour” in the amaretto sour, which usually would so comfortingly cut into the luscious almond sweetness with a tangy kick. As you sip the drink, a lonely rondelle of lemon gradually hits glass bottom, shamed by its own ineptitude.

The mezcal? As you may guess, completely overpowered by its overly ambitious companions. This drink by no means tastes awful, it is just fussy. If a digestif is what you are looking for, order the spirit neat and watch your fellow diners pretend they did not just finish their elaborately plated tiny sausage in two forkfuls. Boulud, le peuple a encore faim!