The Wasteland is a smoky, citrusy Mezcal-based cocktail inspired by the harsh, exhaust-filled desert, featuring bold flavors of blood orange and Maraschino liqueur, served in a rocks glass with a spicy, sandy rim of rock sugar, salt, and cayenne. (Recipe Below)
As the rebel group looks for “The Green Place”, they are chased by Immortan Joe’s War Boys further and further into The Wasteland, our next cocktail inspiration. A riff on the popular cocktail Blood and Sand, The Wasteland blends together Mezcal, Sweet Vermouth, Blood Orange Juice, and Maraschino Liqueur giving this cocktail an acidic and citrus, biting flavor with a lot of smokiness much like the arid, dry land seasoned with the exhaust of the War Rigs that drive over it. Served in a rocks glass with a rim of rock sugar, course salt and cayenne pepper to add a sandy texture and overall alarming spice to really bring The Wasteland experience to this cocktail.
Wasteland
0.75 oz (45mL) Mezcal
0.75 oz (45mL) Sweet Vermouth
0.75 oz (45mL) Luxardo
0.75 oz (45mL) Blood Orange Juice
3 dashes
Blood orange bitters
Orange peel for garnish.
Prepare a rocks glass with a side of the sugar, salt and cayenne. In a mixing glass, combine .75 oz Mezcal, .75 oz Sweet Vermouth, .75 oz Maraschino Liqueur, .75 oz Blood Orange Juice, and 3 dashes of Orange Bitters, add ice and stir for 2 minutes. Strain into rocks glass, express orange peel and lay on ice to garnish.
Cocktails and Videos created by Boozy Movies
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Del Maguey Vida Mezcal
Country: Mexico
ABV: 84 proof/42%
Brand: Pernod Ricard Group
Spirits Type: Mezcal
Taste: Clean, Agave, Spice, Long Smoky Finish
Price Category: $
Made from a blend of Espadin Agaves which are roasted in underground ovens, fermented and twice distilled. It has an earthy smoky flavor that lingers with herbal and spice notes at the front of the palate and a slight bite at the end.
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Martini Rosso Sweet Vermouth
Country: Italy
ABV: 30 proof/15%
Brand: Martini & Rossi
Spirits Type: Amaro, Aperitif & Vermouth
Taste: Sweet, Rich Herb; Fruit; Tobacco
Price Category: $
Naturally burgundy in color. This fortified wine that has been redistilled with additional herbs and spices resulting is a fresh, strong flavored wine with notes of bittersweet orange and fresh herbs. The sweetness provides a richness in flavor and slight caramel in flavor.
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Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
Country: Italy
ABV: 64 proof/32%
Brand: Girolamo Luxardo SpA
Spirits Type: Liqueurs/Cordials/Schnapps
Taste: Semi-Sweet, Cherry Fruit, Barrel Spice
Price Category: $
A liqueur that starts with fermenting Luxardo cherries and cherry tree branches in large ashwood vats. After three years, it is distilled then simple syrup and water are added to balance ot to 32% ABV. The overall flavor is that of cherry and straw with a cacao and bitter orange finish.
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Blood Orange Juice
Our preference is fresh pressed, but pure blood orange juice is widely available in the market. Blood orange juice is sweeter and less acidic than standard orange juice and has a light floral taste with berry undertones. Cara Cara oranges can be used as a substitute.
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Angostura Orange Bitters
Country: Trinidad and Tobago
ABV: 90 proof/45%
Brand: House of Angostura
Spirits Bitters
Taste: Vibrant Orange with slight baking spices
Price Category: $
Bitters are made by concentrating flavors into an alcohol base. Orange bitters vary by brand, but are generally made with bitter orange peel, cardamom, caraway, coriander, anise and toasted sugar.
Cocktails of the Wasteland: Sipping Through the Chaos of Mad Max: Fury Road
In the scorched wasteland of Mad Max: Fury Road, survival is a brutal currency controlled by Immortan Joe, the tyrannical ruler of The Citadel, where water, food, and even blood are hoarded as tools of power. Captured wanderer Max Rockatansky becomes a human blood bank for the sickly War Boy Nux and is dragged into Furiosa’s daring escape after she betrays Joe by smuggling his prized wives—women chosen to bear his children—to freedom. Inspired by these resilient fugitives, “The Wives” cocktail combines crisp gin, elderflower, maraschino liqueur, pear juice, lemon oleo saccharum, and aquafaba into a bright, floral drink crowned with a fluffy white foam and served with a candied lemon ribbon. The second cocktail, “The Wasteland,” mirrors the film’s relentless desert chase with a smoky blend of mezcal, sweet vermouth, blood orange juice, and maraschino liqueur, finished with a spicy rim of rock sugar, coarse salt, and cayenne. Like the film itself—an adrenaline-fueled masterpiece that revitalized the legendary franchise—both cocktails capture the contrast between beauty and brutality that defines George Miller’s post-apocalyptic epic.
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