There are tequilas that are “mixtos,” meaning that they are made with at least 51% agave and fortified with sugars. Stay away from these. They don’t taste much like tequila. Many bartenders and tequila experts recommend choosing a family-owned tequila over a large conglomerate. (We’re looking at you, Cuervo. ) If you can find a tequila that’s part of a small, family-owned business, chances are overwhelming that it will be 100% agave, and simply that it will taste better.
Añejos tend to be more expensive than reposados or blancos, but not outrageously so. You should be able to find a good añejo for under $50. Drink añejos at room temperature. [1] X Research source Adding ice to it dilutes the flavor and can mask the tequila’s different components. If you become serious about sipping tequila, consider getting a tequila glass to enjoy your añejo in. Many also enjoy the tequila in a snifter.
1 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice 1 cup tomato juice (not V-8) 1 oz fresh-squeezed lime juice 1 tsp grenadine 12 dashes hot sauce — e. g. , Cholula
Pour about one ounce of tequila in a tequila glass or snifter. Hold the glass at the stem (not the bowl), raise the glass to eye level and look at the tequila’s color. Swirl the tequila gently in its glass. Note how the tequila clings to the walls of the glass, looking for the “string of pearls” effect. [2] X Research source Take a small sip, swishing the tequila around in your mouth for about 10 seconds, letting the alcohol travel over different parts of your tongue. Swallow and repeat! Fancy, huh?
Lick the skin between your thumb and index finger. Shake a little bit of salt on your skin, which should stick to the moisture. With a tequila shot and lime wedge in hand, lick the salt on your hand and shoot the tequila. Try to get the tequila down in one gulp if you can. You are shooting it, after all. As a “chaser,” suck on the lime wedge after shooting the tequila. The acidity of the lime won’t taste as sharp after the alcohol.
Pour the following ingredients into a cocktail shaker half-full with ice: 2 oz. blanco, oro, or reposado tequila 1/2 oz. orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier or Triple-Sec 1 oz. freshly-squeezed lime juice 1/2 oz. agave nectar sweetener Shake vigorously for 15-20 seconds and strain into cocktail glass with a salted rim.
Into a cocktail shaker filled with ice, mix: 2 1/2 oz blanco tequila 1/2 oz dry vermouth Dash of Angostura bitters Shake vigorously for 15-20 seconds and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with an olive, lemon twist, or jalapeño pepper.
In a highball glass with ice, pour in: 2 oz. blanco, oro, or reposado tequila Enough orange juice to fill the glass almost to the top. Stir ingredients, and then dip two dashes of grenadine syrup into the drink by tilting the glass slightly and funneling the syrup quickly down the side. The grenadine should sink to the bottom and slowly rise through the drink. Garnish with stirrer, straw, and cherry-orange.
Fill a 10-ounce glass with ice. Into the glass, pour: pinch of salt 1 1/2 oz. blanco tequila 1 teaspoon Mexican hot sauce, e. g. Cholula 1 oz. Clamato 1 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice Top up the drink with Mexican Squirt or another grapefruit soda, and garnish with a lemon wheel.
