Paloma with a dried lime wheel.
The Paloma is Mexico's everyday drink, and it's better than the margarita most people reach for. Tequila, lime, and grapefruit lengthened with soda, served long and cold and tart. It's brighter than a margarita, easier to drink, and far less likely to end an evening early. A pinch of salt on the rim is traditional and worth doing.
The lime is usually a wedge squeezed in and dropped to drown. A dried lime wheel does the job cleaner: it floats on top, holds its colour against the pink of the grapefruit, and gives you rind aroma without leaking pith into an already-tart glass.
What you'll need
- 50ml blanco tequila
- 15ml fresh lime juice
- 100ml grapefruit soda, or fresh grapefruit juice
- Soda water, to top (if using juice)
- 1 dried lime wheel
How to make it
- Fill a tall glass with ice. The Paloma is a long, refreshing drink, so go generous.
- Pour in the tequila and fresh lime juice.
- Add the grapefruit soda, or fresh grapefruit juice topped with soda water if you want it less sweet.
- Give it one slow stir to bring it together without knocking out the fizz.
- Float a dried lime wheel on top to finish.
Why dried beats fresh here
A fresh lime wedge gives you a quick burst of sour and then sinks, leaking pith bitterness into a drink that's already walking a tart line. A dried lime wheel keeps its oil in the rind, floats clean on the surface, and reads sharp against the pink right down to the last mouthful.
If you're making a jug for a long afternoon, build it tall, keep the ice coming, and drop a wheel in every glass. The dried wheel holds up through the whole session while a fresh one would have drowned an hour ago.
Use the Lime jar, about 25 wheels, enough for a summer of palomas.