Equipment
Ingredients
Main
- ¼ ripe pineapple, peeled, cored, and chopped
- 7 g honey, raw
- 3 g pink peppercorns, crushed
- 115 ml mezcal
- 6 chile-flavored bitters, habanero flavor
- 15 ml lime juice
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 204 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbohydrates
- 21 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
- Sugar
- 15 g
- Sodium
- 3 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 0 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 0 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 0 g
- Potassium
- 165 mg
- Calcium
- 23 mg
- Iron
- 0.6 mg
- Magnesium
- 18 mg
- Phosphorus
- 14 mg
- Zinc
- 0.2 mg
- Vitamin A
- 7 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 65 mg
- Vitamin E
- 0.0 mg
- Vitamin K
- 1 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.2 mg
- Thiamin
- 0.11 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.05 mg
- Niacin
- 0.7 mg
- Folate
- 27 mcg
- Water
- 118 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Process the chopped pineapple in a food processor until it reaches a smooth consistency.
Press the pineapple pulp through a fine-mesh strainer into a container to collect the juice, discarding the solids.
Add the fresh pineapple juice, honey, and most of the crushed pink peppercorns to a cocktail shaker, reserving a small amount of peppercorns for the final garnish.
Pour the mezcal, chile bitters, and lime juice into the shaker vessel.
Fill the shaker with ice and shake vigorously until the contents are thoroughly chilled.
Place fresh ice into two double rocks glasses and strain the cocktail evenly into them.
Top the drinks with the remaining crushed pink peppercorns.
Chef's Notes
- For the smoothest pineapple juice, ensure your pineapple is very ripe. Overripe pineapple will be softer and easier to process.
- When straining the pineapple, use the back of a spoon to press the pulp firmly against the mesh. This will maximize your juice yield.
- Taste your pineapple juice before adding honey. The sweetness of pineapple can vary greatly, and you may need to adjust the honey accordingly.
- Don't be shy with the shaking! A vigorous shake chills the drink rapidly, dilutes it properly, and creates a desirable frothy texture.
- If you don't have habanero bitters, a dash of a smoky or spicy bitters, or even a tiny sliver of fresh habanero (carefully muddled) can be used as a substitute, though this will alter the flavor profile.
Storage
Troubleshooting
Drink has a gritty or thick texture
Cause: Pineapple juice was not strained effectively through the fine-mesh sieve
Fix: Double strain the final cocktail through a tea strainer when pouring into the glass
Prevention: Ensure the sieve is fine-mesh and do not force large solids through the screen
Cultural Context
Mezcal, the base spirit of this cocktail, is a traditional Mexican spirit with a rich history dating back centuries. Its smoky flavor profile often evokes the earth and fire, making it a versatile spirit for complex cocktails. This drink's name, 'They Didn't Burn Rome in a Day,' is a playful nod to the slow, deliberate development of complex flavors, much like the slow roasting of agave for mezcal or the nuanced build-up of flavors in this cocktail.
