The Finest Good friend is a refreshing mixture of mezcal, Campari, pineapple juice, lime juice, and cinnamon syrup. The drink was created by bartender and guide Karl Steuck and appeared on the opening menu on the Condor Bar on the Roblar Resort in Ojai, California. 

When creating this drink, Steuck was impressed by the tropical traditional Jungle Chicken. “Whereas I personally love the Jungle Chicken, I’m additionally an enormous agave fan,” says Steuck. “I created this cocktail a couple of years again that rapidly turned a crowd pleaser amongst buddies as a sort of intro to mezcal cocktails with a slight tiki vibe.”

Why the Finest Good friend works

Very similar to the Jungle Chicken, the Finest Good friend is constructed on a framework of spirit, pineapple, and Campari. The Finest Good friend makes use of a mezcal base as an alternative of rum, giving the drink a leaner taste profile with extra minerality and delicate smokiness. Steuck recommends utilizing an espadín mezcal. “I’m notably a fan of the La Tierra de Acre with its medium nostril, slight spice with the floral and tropical notes of pineapple and lime,” he says.

The mixture of Campari, pineapple juice, and lime juice provides the drink a barely bitter, citrusy profile that’s paying homage to pink grapefruit. The usage of cinnamon syrup as an alternative of a plain, easy syrup helps to stability the mezcal and the fruit parts with a spherical, warming sweetness.