Ojo De Dios Hibiscus Mezcal

Most flavoured spirits feel like a gimmick. This one earns its place. Ojo de Dios takes its Espadín mezcal and rests it on hibiscus flowers — hand-picked on the coast at Rio Grande and dried for forty days — so the floral, tart character infuses naturally rather than getting bolted on as syrup.

The base is proper Oaxacan mezcal made by maestro Francisco Ortiz, a third-generation mezcalero in San Luis del Rio. The maguey Espadín is roasted in an underground pit oven, crushed by a donkey-drawn tahona, fermented naturally in wooden vats and double-distilled in small copper pot stills. That pit-roasting is where mezcal gets its smoke, and here it's the backbone the hibiscus plays against.

The colour alone makes it worth opening — a deep rosy red. On the nose, ripe summer berries and dried hibiscus lead into a soft curl of woodsmoke. The palate is mellow and lightly herbaceous, with red berry fruit, a twist of orange peel and that smoky floral tartness running through to a gentle, warming finish with a faint chipotle heat. At 35% ABV it's softer than a classic joven, which makes it dangerously easy to sip.

Lovely neat over ice, but it really comes alive in a glass. This is the bottle that turns a quiet kitchen into somewhere more interesting.

How to Serve

Sip it neat over a large ice cube to let the floral notes open, or build a knockout cocktail — it makes a stunning hibiscus margarita or a paloma with grapefruit and a salt rim. A short tumbler is all you need.

Where to Drink It

Kol in Marylebone for serious Mexican drinking. Hacha in Dalston, agave specialists who'll do it justice. Three Sheets in Dalston for an inventive cocktail built around it.

Food Pairings

Try it with citrus-marinated ceviche or fish tacos, where the tart hibiscus and smoke really sing. It also cuts beautifully through anything rich and spiced — slow-cooked pork, a smear of mole.