053 – El Diablo

A Sydney Covid ‘lock-down’ exploration of the 1946 ‘Mexican El Diablo’ cocktail.

Lock-down has inspired me to explore this early ‘Tiki Culture’ cocktail, a bit lacking in a modern-day cocktail catalogue. So this time, we are going to change it up and give it a 2021 update.

Make your own ‘mix-at-home’ 2021 #Locktail re-mix of the 1946 ‘El Diablo’ cocktail.

METHOD – Ad 45ml Reposado Tequila (I used El Jimador), 15ml Crème de Cassis (Joseph Cartron or other quality liqueur), 15ml fresh lime juice, and if making the ‘spicy’ version 4-6 drops of Bittermens’ Hellfire (Habanero) Bitters (or spice infusion of your choice), into a cocktail shaker with a handful of ice. Shake until extremely cold (15-20 seconds) and strain into a coupe or similar cocktail glass. Top up with approximately 90ml (60-120ml) of very cold and freshly opened ginger beer and garnish with one or two maraschino ‘cocktail’ cherries.

HISTORICAL NOTES – Victor Jules Bergeron (1902–1984), better known by the nickname he was given by his first wife, ‘Trader Vic’, is a cocktail and tiki culture legend. Although he didn’t create the ‘tiki’ craze, that honour rests with Ernest ‘Don The Beachcomber’ Gantt (1907–1989). Gantt, who legally changed his name o Donn Beach and set up his ‘Don the Beachcomber’ restaurant in 1933, immediately after the end of US Prohibition (1920–1933), who we explored under his cocktail, the ‘Zombie’.

Trader Vic, admitted to largely copying Gantt’s model, and didn’t start serving tropical drinks in his Oakland bar until 1936. It was largely in the tension and competition between Gantt and Bergeron that the ‘Tiki Culture’ movement really got going, initially in California. It was rumored, and great marketing perhaps, that customers thought that ‘Trader Vic’ had originated in Polynesia and the Trader Vic himself had lost a leg to a shark. The reality was that he was born in San Francisco and had his leg amputated at age-6 to save his life from tuberculosis of the knee.

Regarded as a short-tempered genius, Trader Vic created a multi-million dollar food and drink empire, and along the way created a number of famous cocktails, the Painkiller, the Suffering Bastard (later version), the Fog Cutter, the El Diablo, and most famous of all, the Mai Tai in 1944 which we examined as the previous ‘lock-tail’.

The El Diablo, first appeared as the ‘Mexican El Diablo’ in Bergeron’s 1946 book, ‘Trader Vic’s Book of Food and Drink’, as a Trader Vic original cocktail. It was one of the first Tequila based cocktails, and doesn’t appear as just the ‘El Diablo’ until 1968. There are some accounts that suggest the ‘El Diablo’ was created in his lesser known Mexican restaurant called Señor Pico’s, however that cannot be the case, as the first Señor Pico didn’t open until 1964, so perhaps the drink inspired the Mexican-themed expansion.

The original Trader Vic version is made very similarly to the ‘Mai Tai’, built in the glass, over ice, and with a spent lime shell as garnish. The ingredients the same, but the quantities different to most contemporary recipes, less tequila (30ml) and more lime juice (half-a-lime).

THE OFFICIAL MIX – Unlike Trader Vic’s Mai Tai and Suffering Bastard, the ‘El Diablo’ does not appear in any of the International Bartender Association (IBA) official drinks lists. So the closest to an official recipe is the original 1946 ‘Mexican El Diablo’, half-a-lime, 30ml Tequila, 15ml Crème de Cassis, built in a 300ml glass over ice, garnished with the lime shell and topped up with ginger beer. Served with a straw.

TASTING NOTES – The ‘El Diablo’ is impressive as an early Tequila cocktail and the black-current liqueur is a great match (interestingly mixing Mexican spirit with French circa 1841 liqueur), however the cocktail style – effectively a ‘Tequila Tiki’ is a bit tired and doesn’t handle the dilution of so much melting ice as well as Rum-based cocktails.

So not surprisingly this cocktail has faded in popularity and awareness, especially against later Tequila options. In it’s original form, it is a historical novelty but a relatively low-scoring result both visually and in terms of flavour. Unlike the ‘Mai Tai’, which I tried to replicate as authentically as possible, the ‘El Diablo’ needs a 2021 make-over.

LOCKTAIL CHANGES – As mentioned in the tasting notes above, I am going to change the construction of the ‘El Diablo’ from a build-in-the-glass cocktail, to a partially shaken, almost Martini-style mix.

I have kept the quantities at levels normally used today, 45ml Tequila, 15ml Lime, 15ml Crème de Cassis, and approximately 90ml Ginger Beer (60ml to 120ml depending on glassware size). However shaking the ingredients (except the Ginger Beer) until very cold and ending the dilution at that point. Then topped up with chilled Ginger Beer to taste. The end result is a more contemporary looking cocktail and for me a better tasting end result that is far easier to drink, especially in our ‘post-straw’ world.

YOUR LOCKTAIL EXPERIENCE – If you’d rather taste than read, I am progressively building an ingredient list and other sourcing information on this site. I will re-use ingredients where I can (good for my budget too), so that the cost goes down overtime if you are ‘playing at home’.

Let me know what you think.

Cocktails you’d like reinvented.

Recipes you’ve tried and your ‘score’.

This is third cocktail from the 1941-1950 bracket of ‘Locktail’ remixes. Full list in the index.