la perla

1 1/2 oz Partida Reposado Tequila (Cimarron)
1 1/2 oz Lustau Manzanilla Sherry (Lustau Fino)
3/4 oz Mathilde Pear Liqueur (Rothman & Winter)

Stir with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with a lemon twist.
One of the unoxidized sherry recipes in the PDT Cocktail Book that I could not make until I bought a bottle of Fino was Jacques Benzuidenhout's La Perla that he created in San Francisco circa 2005. The drink was Jacques' nod to Tomas Estes' bar of London's Covent Gardens; Tomas owned the now defunct La Perla and is a renowned tequila guru who founded the Tequila Ocho brand. In the glass, La Perla began with a lemon and muted agave nose. Next, an off-dry white grape and pear sip led into a pear and agave medley with a hint of chocolate on the swallow. Overall, my balance was probably a lot less pear-forward given my liqueur choice (more natural and subtle than Mathilde) and its decade of sitting on my shelf (first blog post usage was this tequila Sour in April 2009).