Margaritas

[Stu Jackson]

Poor Man's Margarita

Limeade

Tequilla

Ice (crushed or hard)

salted rim


Less complexity, less crap to bring along, less time to make, shorter time to start,
it's 90+ degree here in the California Delta.

Time to start mixing, it's 1700 somewhere.

Oh, here, too!

Have a great weekend.

[savoir]

Originally Posted by Roy M

Or, learn to make it yourself! Talk about simple......

Simple ?

There's nothing simple about finding fresh tomatillos in Rhode Island.

[Roy M]

savoir, you mean there are NO Mexican bodegas in that benighted state? That is really hard to imagine.

[savoir]

None in Newport - Middletown - Portsmouth.

None in Wickford - North Kingstown - East Greenwich - Warwick

You might find one in Woonsocket. A lot of people from Ecuador live up there but I'm not driving for an hour to get a tomatillo.

Now if you wanted some stuffies . . . . .

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Roy M

savoir, you mean there are NO Mexican bodegas in that benighted state? That is really hard to imagine.

A lot of things are hard to find in places you would think they'd have it.

I once tried to make carne asada tacos for a friend of mine in Tuscaloosa, AL. I went all over searching for carne asada, even found a place called "Carneceria", and the butcher had no meat at all! Ended up buying flap meat and marinating it in a cobbled together asada marinade from oranges, meat tenderizer, taco seasoning, etc.

It came out ok, not great, but I was blown away at all of the big grocery stores I went to that did not have carne asada, taco seasoning, cilantro, or avocados!

[Dockhead]

I'm really impressed how many here know about real Margaritas -- that is, the ones made without Whiskey Sour mix, bar syrup, etc. It's almost impossible to get this kind of Margarita in a bar or restaurant, and I find most bartenders have never even heard of it.

Nothing particularly against the Whiskey Sour mix, lime juice, and tequila drink (as long as I don't have to drink it); it's just a different drink which IMHO ought to have its own name.

[socaldmax]

A long time ago a buddy and I were sitting in a Tequila bar in Old Town, San Diego (a tourist trap) just checking out the talent. 4 very talented girls came in and went straight up to the bar and demanded "4 shots of CUERVO GOLD, PRONTO!" The bartender looked at them with a look if disbelief and said something like, "You don't know anything about tequila, do you?"

I nudged my buddy and we went over to the bar, the girls let us slide in with them. I figured I knew my way around tequila, but I was willing to learn more from a bartender. So he explained to all of us the different tequilas, starting from the worst (Cuervo Gold) all the way up to their most expensive, which I don't recall now. Patron ended up very close to the high end of the bunch. He poured us half shots of everything and didn't charge us, so we tipped him big. It was a fun evening!

[savoir]

The best tequila for margaritas is Hornitos.

The best top shelf tequilas that are easy to get are Don Julio and Herradura. They are even sold in RI. El Tesoro is a great product but hard to find. Patron is good and sold everywhere but not worth the price.

The best tequila is Chinaco followed by Partida but both are very hard to find. Don't dare waste them on a margarita.

[socaldmax]

I use lower priced tequilas in Margaritas because the flavor is masked by the mixers, I save the really good stuff for shots.

[Target9000]

Originally Posted by savoir

The best tequila for margaritas is Hornitos.

The best top shelf tequilas that are easy to get are Don Julio and Herradura. They are even sold in RI. El Tesoro is a great product but hard to find. Patron is good and sold everywhere but not worth the price.

The best tequila is Chinaco followed by Partida but both are very hard to find. Don't dare waste them on a margarita.

100% agreement with these statements. But I will elaborate a bit for the uninitiated.

Hornitos a good "mixer" tequila because it is 100% agave but it is still cheap enough to put into a mixed drink. Its also relatively tastey/smooth. In a mixed drink, you do not have to worry about Blanco, Reposado, or Anejo, just get one and put it in. Jose Quervo (IN ALL ITS FORMS) is trash. Its mostly grain alcohol and will give you a terrible headache/illness.

Top shelf tequila, you will want to worry about the grades of tequila. Blanco (aged least), Reposado (aged 6m to 2y) or Anejo (over 2y). As the tequila ages, it picks up a darker color in the cask and usually smooths out and develops complexity. Find a brand you like and experiment with the 3 to see how its character changes.

Don Julio is indeed my favorite top shelf. For a 50 dollar bottle, I don't think it can be beat. It destroys Patron. I think that Patron is mainly just another marketing push by those brilliant people that brought us "Vodka martinis" and the like. They market an "okay" product and charge a premium price.

[Target9000]

Originally Posted by socaldmax

I use lower priced tequilas in Margaritas because the flavor is masked by the mixers, I save the really good stuff for shots.

If you're shooting something, use a middle of the rode tequila. Anything that starts approaching 40-50 dollars a bottle is sipping tequila. You don't shoot scotch too do you?

[letsgetsailing3]

Any 100% agave tequila is fine for margaritas.

Good taste, no bad headache the next day.

[letsgetsailing3]

Originally Posted by Target9000

100% agreement with these statements. But I will elaborate a bit for the uninitiated.

Hornitos a good "mixer" tequila because it is 100% agave but it is still cheap enough to put into a mixed drink. Its also relatively tastey/smooth. In a mixed drink, you do not have to worry about Blanco, Reposado, or Anejo, just get one and put it in. Jose Quervo (IN ALL ITS FORMS) is trash. Its mostly grain alcohol and will give you a terrible headache/illness.

Top shelf tequila, you will want to worry about the grades of tequila. Blanco (aged least), Reposado (aged 6m to 2y) or Anejo (over 2y). As the tequila ages, it picks up a darker color in the cask and usually smooths out and develops complexity. Find a brand you like and experiment with the 3 to see how its character changes.

Don Julio is indeed my favorite top shelf. For a 50 dollar bottle, I don't think it can be beat. It destroys Patron. I think that Patron is mainly just another marketing push by those brilliant people that brought us "Vodka martinis" and the like. They market an "okay" product and charge a premium price.

Good assessment.

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Target9000

If you're shooting something, use a middle of the rode tequila. Anything that starts approaching 40-50 dollars a bottle is sipping tequila. You don't shoot scotch too do you?

Let me clarify...

Due to the number of alcoholics I know, I don't buy any $50-60 tequilas. LOL

I do have Herradura, Hornitos, Don Julio, Patron and lately, Kirkland. Of these, I still think the Patron is the smoothest for shots or sipping, although for sipping I prefer Agavero, a tequila liqueur or Orendain, an almond flavored liqueur.

When people start talking about ranking different tequilas, I think it's important to keep in mind that taste is still very subjective. Someone may prefer a blanco over a reposado, someone else may prefer Herradura over Hornitos or vice versa. It depends on whether you like the taste, or you prefer smoothness, etc. Not everyone's tastebuds agree.

[captain58sailin]

When four very talented girls come into a bar and order 4 shots of cheap tequila, there is only one course of action for the informed lounge lizard, sidle on up and say "Can I buy the next round ladies?" And let events take their natural course. Just enough tequila to keep things entertaining, but not so much as to cause illness.