Cocktail Hour: Margaritas -- got a good recipe?

[SallyLightfoot]

I was never into tequila or margaritas, but a couple of weeks ago I decided to try my hand at it.

Here's the classic margarita, which is a bit plain and tart:

[b]Classic Margarita[/b]
2 oz. Tequila (blanco)
1 oz. orange liquer (triple sec, cointreau or grand marnier)
1 oz. fresh lime juice
salt, either in the drink or rim, of the glass

Here's my recipe, which I cobbled together from a few other recipes that I experimented with.

[b]Gila Margarita[/b]
2 oz. Tequila (blanco)
2 oz. lager beer (a [i]mild[/i] beer like Magic Hat 9 or Coors-- nothing bold or hoppy)
1 oz. orange liquer (Cointreau or Grand Marnier, but anything similar is ok)
1 oz. fresh lime juice
1/2 oz. agave syrup
1/2 oz. (optional) habenero pepper-infused cane or agave syrup*

This makes a larger drink which has the vegetal/pinecone taste of tequila, the fruitiness of the juice and liquer, all thickened and made sparkly by the beer. Oh yeah-- and followed by a helluva nice pepper kick! By the way, the proportions listed above are estimates. I've only made this a handful of times, so I basically adjust until I find the right balance of flavors. Also, I don't usually do the salt thing on the glass, but if somebody asks for it, I'll carefully wipe some agave syrup on the rim and sprinkle some salt on it.

*[b]Habanero-infused Syrup[/b]
To infuse the cane or agave syrup, just buy a few habaneros and de-seed them, and let them soak in a small jar or bowl of syrup for a few hours. Consider wearing gloves while cleaning the peppers, since the oil/juice can leave a chemical burn on your hands. I tried repeatedly to use jalapeno peppers for this, but I always ended up with syrup that had the taste and smell of jalapeno [i]without[/i] the heat of the peppers. Habaneros are many times stronger than jalapenos, so that seems to have solved it. After a few hours, the syrup remains sweet, but retains an unmistakable lingering pepper-heat.

[b]A few words about tequila.[/b]
It's not my favorite liquor. It seems way overpriced. A few terms:

White/Blanco/Silver/Platino: Unaged tequila - the raw stuff.
Reposado/Gold: Aged 2 months to 1 year - smoothed by aging.
Anejo: 1 to 3 years - refined, whisky like character, for sipping.

For mixed drinks, I would stick with blanco or a cheaper reposado. I would also look for 100% agave on the label, since anything else is usually doctored with the lowest quality industrial distillates known to mankind. I'm not an expert on the hundreds of available brands, but so far I like Cazodores, Teza, and Lunazul. I think the larger mass-produced brand names seem to be either overpriced (e.g. Patron, Corzon), dull (e.g., Sauza) or both (e.g., Cuervo, Don Julio).

[b]Wrap-Up[/b]
Do you have a favorite recipe or ingredient for margaritas? Let's hear it.

[KYYX4ever]

Yum, 100% agave tequila !

The good stuff may seem pricey, but it's totally worth it. A bottle can last me over a year.
I really like El Tesoro, Espolon, DeReyes, Centenario, & Penca Azul. These are, however, good sipping tequilas. I used to love margaritas in college (with good ol' cheap Cuervo, which I can't even stomach now), but now it's not really my bag, which I blame on my discovery of these aforementioned agave tequilas. If I (rarely) have a margarita now, I will use Patron or Herradura.

But really, it's worth it to indulge in a nice 100% agave. That's the pure stuff. I can't even stand the scent of Cuervo.

Margaritas: I like to blend lime juice (sweetened, like a limeade) with a generous splash of both agave and lime juice (the squeeze bottle kind, or fresh limes if you have any handy), and a few ice cubes in a container. Seal it and SHAKE VIGOROUSLY. Pour in a glass and enjoy !

My fave tequila recipe would be: orange juice, orange curacao, ice cubes, and agave tequila shaken vigorously and poured in a glass.

Enjoy it, however you make it !

[SallyLightfoot]

Sounds like a recipe I'll have to try-- like a tequila sunrise with oj & curacao instead of grenadine.

Happy cinco de mayo!!

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[SallyLightfoot]

[i]My fave tequila recipe would be: orange juice, orange curacao, ice cubes, and agave tequila shaken vigorously and poured in a glass.[/i]

I tried this exact recipe tonight after a couple of Hemmingway Daiquiris (rhum agricole, grapefruit juice, maraschino liquer, lime juice). It tasted just like I thought it would, which is to say: Good stuff! After the first one, I added a bit of the habanero-infused agave syrup, and I think it's a winner!