Naked and Almost Famous

The Naked and Famous is a cocktail developed by bartender, Joaquín Simó, during his time at Death and Co. in New York City. The drink is made up of equal parts mezcal, Aperol, yellow chartreuse, and lime juice. Joaquín describes the drink as the “bastard love child borne out of an illicit Oaxacan love affair” between a Last Word and Paper Plane.

The Naked and Famous is delicious as it is - especially when made with a bold, funky mezcal like Del Maguey Chichicapa (which is the mezcal the original recipe calls for) - I wanted to put my little spin on it.

I wanted to introduce a bit of heat to the cocktail and play with the fruity notes of the Aperol. To do so, I infused Aperol with Guajillo chilies for that touch of heat and introduced that subtle jammy quality you get from Guajillo chilies. I swapped out the lime juice for lemon juice and smoked the glass with applewood chips for an extra element of smoke.

The Recipe

• ¾ oz. mezcal
• ¾ oz. Guajillo-infused Aperol
• ¾ oz. yellow Chartreuse
• ¾ oz. fresh lemon juice

Ignite wood chips on a fire-proof surface. Once the fire goes out, capture smoke in a chilled rocks glass by placing the glass over the wood chips. While the glass is collecting smoke, move on to building the cocktail. Combine mezcal, Aperol, yellow chartreuse, and lemon juice in a shaker, fill with ice, and shake until chilled. Flip over your smoked rocks glass, add fresh ice, and strain the chilled drink into the rocks glass. Cheers!