Poached Pear Recipe
A tart reposado tequila sour with pear liqueur and a dash of spiced red wine syrup, echoing a pear poached in mulled wine.
- Category: Popular
- Glass: Old fashioned glass
- ABV: 14%
- Difficulty: Hard
Ingredients
- Reposado tequila52 ml (1.8 oz)
- Fresh lime juice37 ml (1.3 oz)
- Agave syrup22 ml (0.7 oz)
- Pear liqueur22 ml (0.7 oz)
- Spiced red wine syrup7.5 ml (0.3 oz)
How to Make It
- Ahead of time, simmer equal parts red wine and sugar with a cinnamon stick, cloves and star anise until syrupy; strain and cool.
- Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice.
- Shake hard until well chilled.
- Strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass.
Garnish
None
What it tastes like
The citrus acidity leads, fruit notes come forward and there is a spiced warmth to it.
The technique
Shaking. Anything with juice, syrup, egg white or cream gets shaken: the shaker chills the drink and adds roughly 20% water, and that water is what takes the edge off. Twelve to fifteen seconds, until the tin frosts over. Under-shaking leaves the drink harsh because it never got enough dilution.
Glass and ice
A heavy-bottomed, wide old fashioned glass. Wide enough for one large cube, which is the point: a big cube has less surface area, so the drink gets cold without getting watery.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Reposado tequila
- Tequila rested in barrel for two months to a year. The agave edge has softened into vanilla and cinnamon; you can swap in blanco, but the drink comes out sharper.
- Fresh lime juice
- Freshly squeezed lime. Bottled lime tastes cooked and flat; one lime gives about 30 ml. If you have none, half lemon and half grapefruit juice comes closest.
- Agave syrup
- Agave syrup. About a third sweeter than simple syrup, so use three quarters of the amount rather than a straight swap. It comes from the same plant as tequila and mezcal, which is why it sits so naturally with them.
The Story
A contemporary American autumn cocktail in the margarita family; the spiced wine syrup is made in-house by simmering red wine with sugar and warm spices.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Poached Pear mixed?
- It is shaken and served in an old fashioned glass.
- How strong is a Poached Pear?
- Roughly 14% ABV as served — right around a glass of wine — an aperitif or an early-evening drink.
- Can a Poached Pear be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Poached Pear hard to make?
- Hard. Either something has to be prepared in advance or a step needs timing; halving the measures on the first attempt is sensible.
The main ingredient here is also a dream symbol: Wine in a dream
759 recipes in your pocket
Cocktails and mocktails from 55 countries — ingredients, steps and the story behind each drink. Works offline too.
Similar recipes
Collections
Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.