Active Time

　　10 minutes

　　Total Time

　　30 minutes, plus cooling

　　There’s a long-running tradition of cocktails that name-check the morning repast, including the “breakfast martini” prepared with orange marmalade (it’s not really a martini at all) and the breakfast daiquiris that my good friend Nicholas Jarrett and his then roommate Thomas Waugh used to make at their apartment in Williamsburg around 2009. In those days Clover Club and Death and Co. bartenders would make classic daiquiris with a splash of grapefruit at sunrise—or at least they liked to talk about it a lot. 

　　I wanted to evoke those early morning daiquiris with this riff on the margarita. Feisty enough to start your evening but created with brunch vibes in mind, this cocktail combines a subtly smoky mezcal with a classic breakfast tea. 

　　Margaritas spring from the classic cocktail family of daisies—drinks sweetened with a liqueur. The version everyone knows uses curaçao or orange liqueur, and while you still get a hint of the classic American breakfast fruit with the Earl Grey, the citrus liqueur in my daisy is my personal morning citrus favorite, grapefruit.

　　

Ingredients

Makes 1

　　

Earl Grey Syrup

2 Earl Grey tea bags or ¼ oz. (7 g) loose-leaf Earl Grey tea

　　1 cup (200 g) sugar

　　

Cocktail

2 oz. mezcal (such as Del Maguey Vida)

　　¾ oz. fresh lime juice

　　½ oz. Earl Grey Syrup

　　½ oz. pamplemousse liqueur (such as Giffard)

　　Pinch kosher salt

　　Grapefruit slice dipped in salt (for serving; optional)

　　

Earl Grey Syrup

Step 1

Bring 1 cup water to a boil. Pour into glass or ceramic container with 2 Earl Grey tea bags or ¼ oz. (7 g) loose-leaf Earl Grey tea. Steep for 7 minutes. Strain into a resealable glass jar, discarding tea bags or leaves. Add 1 cup (200 g) sugar and stir until mostly dissolved. Let cool until barely warm, seal jar, and shake until sugar is fully dissolved. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. Shake before using.

　　

Cocktail

Step 2

Combine 2 oz. mezcal, ¾ oz. fresh lime juice, ½ oz. Earl Grey Syrup, ½ oz. pamplemousse liqueur, and a pinch kosher salt with ice in a cocktail shaker. Shake until well chilled, about 15 seconds. Double strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a grapefruit slice dipped in salt, if using.