Monte Paloma
The Mexican highball, run through Bologna: tequila, grapefruit and Amaro Montenegro.
Time
3 min
Difficulty
Easy
Glass
Highball
Method
Built
The Method
How to make it
- 01
Salt half the rim of a highball glass and fill it with ice.
- 02
Build tequila, Amaro Montenegro and lime juice directly in the glass.
- 03
Top with cold grapefruit soda.
- 04
Give one gentle lift with a bar spoon to combine without killing the fizz.
- 05
Garnish with a grapefruit wedge.
Bartender's Tip
Use a genuinely bitter grapefruit soda. Sweet supermarket brands collapse into candy — if that's all you have, swap in 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice topped with soda water.
A Little History
The Paloma is Mexico's real national cocktail — far more common there than the Margarita — and bartenders on both sides of the border have spent the last decade splicing it with Italian bitters. Amaro Montenegro is the natural partner: its candied-orange and rose notes read as an extension of the grapefruit rather than an intrusion, which is why the Monte Paloma turns up on aperitivo menus from Mexico City to Milan.
