I like cocktails. I have one almost every evening. At around 5:00 pm. Actually it’s more like exactly at 5:00 pm. And yes, I’ve been known to watch the little hand take forever to get to that number five.
I’m not sure where it came from, but somehow in my brain there’s something that says I might have a drinking problem if I start before five. But if I can hold off until Jimmy Buffet hour, I’m simply a social drinker.
I said that I have one cocktail almost every evening. I need to correct that line as well. I should have said that I have one or two cocktails every evening and, yes, it’s usually two. But I rarely, if ever, have more than two.
Last Thursday evening, I had four cocktails. I wasn’t celebrating anything. Other than it being five o’clock. It was just the setting, the atmosphere, the company I was keeping, the enthusiastic bartender and the clincher, a sign that said “Toda la Cocteleria 2 x $149”.
We were at Tyto’s, a place where I’m quickly becoming a regular. The bartender there is called Diego Capitan and I think he’s very good at his job.
You will notice that I called Diego a bartender, not a mixologist. That’s because when I go to a bar manned (or womanned) by a mixologist, it seems that the cocktails seem to almost double in price. And do I really need a premium vodka in my Bloody Mary or a premium tequila in my Margarita? Can I tell the difference? Of course not.
Diego Capitan doesn’t use premium liquors but, like mixologists, he’s inventive, he’s creative, and he’s very proud of what he puts inside a glass. And despite the absence of a grey hair on his head, Diego is a guy who’s obviously been around. The list of San Miguel bars he hasn’t worked at may be shorter than the list of the ones he has. He may have shaken a margarita more times than Shakira has shaken her booty.
Tyto’s has many of the classics on their blackboard, the kind I’d find in that Mr. Boston Official Bartender’s Guide that I kept suitably hidden so guests would think I could fill all of their requests from memory. But Tyto’s also has a section on the board called De Autor which features Diego’s personal concoctions. There are four of them in total.
We hummed. We hawed. Rum or bourbon? Tequila or mezcal? We hummed and hawed again. Cassis or amaretto? Campari or Licor 43? We ordered all four of Diego’s specialties.
Now I could waste your time by telling you about each of the cocktails. But if it’s before five o’clock and if you follow the same rulebook as I do, that may be dangerous to your health. So I’ll just tell you about one. My favorite. Malinche.
The name of the cocktail refers to La Malinche, the Nahua woman who acted as the go-between for Hernan Cortes and Moctezuma and who gave birth to a son fathered by Cortes (that’s Malinche on the right next to Cortes in the pictograph). To some, Malinche is considered a powerful icon, to others a scheming temptress. Both descriptions seem to fit Diego’s drink.
The cocktail combines Mezcal, Licor 43 (a very trendy Spanish liqueur that I’d never heard of until a couple of years ago), cucumber, thyme, pineapple, lime and agave syrup. What made it different from the others? Let’s just say I like the taste of cucumber. There was a certain freshness. And, most importantly, I would order one again.
Well that’s if I ever get a chance. As we were leaving, Diego Capitan said to me, “La próxima vez, tengo dos o tres más que quiero que pruebes.” Now my Spanish language skills are embarassingly poor but I did understand enough that, as I walked through the tunnel that leads to and from Tyto’s, I began singing, “Shake it up, baby. Shake it up now.”
No, not now. Never before 5:00 pm.
Tyto’s Grill & Drinks is located at Salida a Celaya #6 in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. The bar/restaurant is open from 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday; 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, Sundays. The 2 for 1 cocktail special is available on Mondays and Wednesdays.
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