Paloma, the Other Tequila Classic

Our neighbors to the south really know how to make some tasty cocktails.  My first time trying a paloma I thought, “Where has this been my whole life?”.  Grapefruit is too often overlooked in the world of cocktails, but in a paloma, it is front and center.  There is something about the tartness of grapefruit juice and the smokiness of tequila that complement each other to create a wonderfully refreshing drink.

As I mentioned, the paloma originates from Mexico.  You can tell it is related to the margarita, but in a ‘distant cousin’ kind of way, or maybe ‘the mailman spent a lot of time with mommy’ kind of way.  The paloma is popular in Mexico but has limited awareness in the states.  I was watching some cooking show with comedian/actress Amy Schumer, and she mentioned she was introduced to the paloma at Ellen DeGeneres’ birthday party and liked it so much she made it the drink of her wedding.   So, maybe it is the current drink of the stars.  Whether the paloma is heading for its 15 minutes of fame or not, it is delicious, and since discovering it, I have a hard time deciding between making myself a margarita or a paloma.  And, I make a mean margarita, you can find that recipe here.

The quick and easy preparation for a paloma is to use a grapefruit soda.  Similar to my take on ginger beer, I prefer to use the real thing.  Using grapefruit juice really makes the drink.  You top the drink off with nice fizzy soda water and you can add simple syrup to sweeten, but I prefer to keep that at a minimum.  I think too much sweetness actually takes away from that beautiful combo of grapefruit and tequila.  I also prefer to control the amount of sugar I’m drinking as much as possible.  Even if you prefer to add some syrup, you will still likely be adding less sugar than if you used a grapefruit soda.

The tartness of the grapefruit juice matters in this drink.  The tarter the better.  I’ve tried this with fresh squeezed juice, as well as some bottled at my grocery store.  Believe it or not, I prefer the grocery store juice.  Get the stuff without sugar added, but in my experience this juice got nice and tart in the refrigerator.  The fresh squeezed juice didn’t have the same punch of flavor.

Just like a margarita, a salted rim is a perfect complement to the tequila/citrus combo.  If you haven’t tried a paloma, I strongly suggest you give it a shot.  Be prepared to buy more tequila for your home because you will be making more than margaritas from here on out.  Cheers!