Hey, guys! It’s more than a hundred degrees outside. And with triple-digit temps looming the rest of the week, we’re officially in the thick of the summer, the part where even the diehards who insist they love North Texas summers crave cold showers, whip out their heat shields and seek shelter from that infernal orb in the sky.
Chances are they, like the rest of us, yearn for brisk and brawny adult beverages, and lucky for everyone involved, the bartenders of Dallas-Fort Worth have got this need covered. From cool afternoon refreshers to evening energizers, here are six DFW cocktails to get you through the rest of the sweltering season.
CARDAMOM LIMEADE, Zatar, Deep Ellum
Zatar’s Cardamom Limeade is a simple and perfect antidote to a stiflingly hot afternoon, and if it were any more friendly you might get suspicious.
A blend of gin, lime, soda and cardamom bitters, it’s a no-fuss cooler with exotic flavor and I would gladly drink these well into a summer night were it not for the fact that there’s so many other great drinks out there.
CARD SHARK, Billy Can Can, Victory Park
When it’s this hot, one word comes to mind: Slushie. My friends, Billy Can Can will hook you up. The mythical journey of this mysterious man of the West is chronicled in the cocktail lineup at this newly opened establishment in Victory Park, and the Card Shark sits near the end of that trail. A frozen variation of the classic Queen’s Park Swizzle — a Trinidadian mix of rum, lime, sugar, mint and bitters — it’s served up in a glass boot, so despite the drink’s name, the only thing you’ll need to worry about with this Card Shark is tipping it over.
MANGO LASSIE, Parliament, Uptown
Parliament’s Jesse Powell was introduced to the traditional Indian mango milkshake during a recent visit to Pub Royale, an Anglo-Indian style tavern in Chicago.
Savoring its mix of yogurt, mango, milk and sugar, he naturally wondered — as he often does, when it comes to these things — how he could translate its pleasures into a cocktail. He structured its viscous, sour-sweet depths on a dark rum foundation, garnishing the Creamsicle-orange drink with cool mint and a clever dash of Mexican tajin, the chili powder that often graces that country’s mango street snacks. Complete with crushed ice, it’s one of the tastiest summer cocktails you’ll ever have.
HER NAME IS HAZEL, ABV Lounge, Lower Greenville
The Pimm’s Cup is the seasonal warm-weather classic, and ABV Lounge’s Christian Rodriguez has added ginger and spice and everything nice, by which I mean gin.
For the summer, Pimm’s No. 1 liqueur, cucumber and lemon have welcomed saucy Allspice Dram, the bite of ginger syrup and Aviation gin over to their house and hey, it’s everybody into the pool.
GRITO!, The People’s Last Stand, Mockingbird Station
Finish your night with this spicy number, one that might have you aay-yai-yai-ing like a joyful mariachi — the sound of which the drink’s name recalls.
The first of several concoctions Henry Mendoza of The People’s Last Stand has devised in tribute to Pixar’s Coco, it’s a cool but fiery mix of smoky mezcal, peppercorn syrup, agave, sage and summery bitters. The pachanga-in-your-mouth mix of pepper and citrus/chamomile-heavy “Boston Bittahs” is what makes this one shine. Bring on the sequel!