Informal Tequila/Margarita Poll

[bb557]

I am having some friends over next week and it is going to be Mexican food. I am not much of a Margarita or Tequila drinker and do not stock Tequila as a rule. I have gotten a Margarita recipe from someone who will be attending, but thought I would ask you guys what Tequila you use for Margaritas.

I was thinking a Blanco but I am not sure. Type and brand would be great and price isn't really a concern as I assume we won't be dealing with any of the super premium Anejo stuff.

Thanks, gents.

[letterk]

I change it up frequently, but my two margarita staples are Hornitos Reposado and Tres Generaciones Plata (Blanco). Neither are top-shelf sipping tequilas, but make a fine margarita, are found everywhere, and are reasonably priced. I frequently find the Hornitos for $20 on sale and the TG a little over $30 on sale.

[BobS]

After living in Mexico for 10 years, I am very much into a good sipping tequila, but for a margarita, I pick up a half gallon of the cheapest I can find.

[The Knize]

I am having some friends over next week and it is going to be Mexican food. I am not much of a Margarita or Tequila drinker and do not stock Tequila as a rule. I have gotten a Margarita recipe from someone who will be attending, but thought I would ask you guys what Tequila you use for Margaritas.

I was thinking a Blanco but I am not sure. Type and brand would be great and price isn't really a concern as I assume we won't be dealing with any of the super premium Anejo stuff.

Thanks, gents.

How good are your friends? I use as good a tequila as I have in margaritas, except I would not generally use an Anejo as I am not looking for the wood flavor. I am probably going to be in the minority, but to me life is too short to drink inexpensive tequila, and if one uses the right ingredients, no one should be able to say that the other cheap ingredients are covering up the flavor of the tequila.

I used freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice (about 1/2 and 1/2), usually Cointreau (instead of triple sec), and here is a special ingredient for you that makes a big difference, agave syrup as a sweetner. Agave syrup at health food stores, Whole Foods, etc. Wonderful stuff. Good for you, too, supposedly. Maybe throw in a dash of salt to good sized batch. Drink chilled up or on the rocks, but not frozen and no salt rims. I would tend to make them not too too sour and certainly not over sweetened. The tequila and the Cointreau should come through. Your flavor profile for these should end up very pure.

As for brands of tequila, my favorites would be something like Casa Noble, Don Julio, Don Eduardo, each for resposado or blanco. I myself would stay away from anything that does not say 100% agave on the label. Although I am not generally a fan of Jose Cuervo products, I find that 1800 brand is not bad for inexpensive but 100% agave tequila. El Jimador is not bad either, so long as it says 100% agave on the label. Some does not and is not! Hornitos is 100% agave and is decent, as is Tres Generaciones.

I am probably in the minority to say this, but I think that Patron is way overrated and over-priced. Even if it were not, Patron is very smooth and kind of light. I would look for a tequila with more pepper to it for margaritas.

Cazadores might be a good pick.

[letterk]

How good are your friends? I use as good a tequila as I have in margaritas, except I would not generally use an Anejo as I am not looking for the wood flavor. I am probably going to be in the minority, but to me life is too short to drink inexpensive tequila, and if one uses the right ingredients, no one should be able to say that the other cheap ingredients are covering up the flavor of the tequila.

I used freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice (about 1/2 and 1/2), usually Cointreau (instead of triple sec), and here is a special ingredient for you that makes a big difference, agave syrup as a sweetner. Agave syrup at health food stores, Whole Foods, etc. Wonderful stuff. Good for you, too, supposedly. Maybe throw in a dash of salt to good sized batch. Drink chilled up or on the rocks, but not frozen and no salt rims. I would tend to make them not too too sour and certainly not over sweetened. The tequila and the Cointreau should come through. Your flavor profile for these should end up very pure.

As for brands of tequila, my favorites would be something like Casa Noble, Don Julio, Don Eduardo, each for resposado or blanco. I myself would stay away from anything that does not say 100% agave on the label. Although I am not generally a fan of Jose Cuervo products, I find that 1800 brand is not bad for inexpensive but 100% agave tequila. El Jimador is not bad either, so long as it says 100% agave on the label. Some does not and is not! Hornitos is 100% agave and is decent, as is Tres Generaciones.

I am probably in the minority to say this, but I think that Patron is way overrated and over-priced. Even if it were not, Patron is very smooth and kind of light. I would look for a tequila with more pepper to it for margaritas.

Cazadores might be a good pick.

I agree with just about everything you said, especially the part about Patron. The only reason I suggested something a little lower on the quality scale is because I'm unsure of the palate of Brent's guests. No use wasting good tequila on people that don't care. I find Cazadores makes a pretty good margarita, but it sometimes gets lost in the flavors of the other ingredients. It's a rather light spirit.

[The Knize]

I agree with just about everything you said, especially the part about Patron. The only reason I suggested something a little lower on the quality scale is because I'm unsure of the palate of Brent's guests. No use wasting good tequila on people that don't care. I find Cazadores makes a pretty good margarita, but it sometimes gets lost in the flavors of the other ingredients. It's a rather light spirit.

You are probably right about the Cazadores being a little light. Maybe Herradura, especially if the version in round bottle that they sell in Mexico is available. Or I forgot the one I think is the real category value killer/leader, El Tesoro de Don Felipe. I am not sure I like any tequila as much as that one, except for the Casa Noble and a couple of obscure ones. And you are right about the pricing. The 1800 and El Jimador should be on the lower end of prices for a 100% agave. They had better be good friends for me to pouring Don Julio, much less Casa Noble.

Maybe use Gran Gala instead of Cointreau, too.

Hope this stuff helps, OP!

Thanks!

[Luc]

Interesting thread.

For mixing, I have to agree with the previous statement, you do not need high quality booze. I would keep the stuff that I can drink by itself in a glass while I make the margaritas! I am not a fan of the drink but if I have to make one, I will make it with regular tequila like Jose Cuervos. I usually prefer yellow/gold/brown tequilla.

[BobS]

It might be fun to make several different batches with different brands and ages and having a tasting. We got to using white/silver tequila for that reason.

The comment about using the agave syrup is right on -- definitely use it if you can find it. The owner of Chinaco taught me that one, when I was living in Tampico.

Chinaco is a fine tequila, if you have not tried it!

[castlecraver]

+1 with John and cstrother. I can't add anything more -- these guys know what they're doing when it comes to Tequila.

[theperfectstorm]

I agree that Cazadores is a little light.

Gold Chinaco is my personal favorite for margaritas, with Mandarin Napoleon.

For a crowd I would go with simply Sauza Hornitos and Grand Marnier.

[bb557]

It most certainly does. As always, thanks for all of the terrific information.

It is a smallish gathering of very good friends, so I definitely want to do the best I can.

You have all given me a great list to work from and thanks for all of the help. I actually already have and use Agave syrup so a simple matter to add it to the recipe in lieu of sugar.

Thanks again gents and I will report what I use and how it goes.

[Obsessed]

to me life is too short to drink inexpensive tequila

Yup.

I'm no expert, but the Don Julio Blanco is excellent. It was actually served to me neat, right out of the freezer.

[RichGem]

If your going to combine the tequilla with a mix, particularly a commercial one, go with a cheap tequilla as the mix will kill any advantage to an expensive one. Cuervo Gold is what I use... the smokeiness of the agave comes across quite nicely, imho.

[letterk]

Good call on the Heradura. That one slipped my mind. I really need to get a bottle of the El Tesoro de Don Felipe. Haven't tried it yet. Seeing as my Don Julio Anejo is just about out, I think I need to make a tequila run!

Oh, one last tip. Practice a few times with the ingredients you choose before your guests come over. Each spirit is different and you'll probably find tweaking the ratios to really impact the resulting margarita.

[letterk]

For a crowd I would go with simply Sauza Hornitos and Grand Marnier.

That's always a winning combo and it won't break the bank.

[bb557]

Good call on the Heradura. That one slipped my mind. I really need to get a bottle of the El Tesoro de Don Felipe. Haven't tried it yet. Seeing as my Don Julio Anejo is just about out, I think I need to make a tequila run!

Oh, one last tip. Practice a few times with the ingredients you choose before your guests come over. Each spirit is different and you'll probably find tweaking the ratios to really impact the resulting margarita.

Thanks, I will definitely do that. The recipe I am going to use is Tequila, Limes, Cointreau and Agave syrup on the rocks. I will also play with adding Lemons as was suggested above.

Thanks again fellas.

[knlgskr]

3 parts tequila, 1 part orange liqueur. 100% agave tequila, your choice on brand preferably blanco/silver. I prefer nothing mixed, can't stand by itself I don't consider it worth drinking but to each their own.

[Confuzius]

I find when I'm making Margaritas I'm very much at the mercy of the limes which often have a tendancy to be either perfect, or very very sour. I'll sometimes add sugar or lemon juice (lemons here seem to be always sweeter than limes) to compensate.
My girlfriend actually prefers lemon only Margaritas with no lime... I don't know if they still qualify.

After looking at this I think I need to pick myself up some agave syrop, does it have a bettter shelf life than homemade simple?

[bb557]

I find when I'm making Margaritas I'm very much at the mercy of the limes which often have a tendancy to be either perfect, or very very sour. I'll sometimes add sugar or lemon juice (lemons here seem to be always sweeter than limes) to compensate.
My girlfriend actually prefers lemon only Margaritas with no lime... I don't know if they still qualify.

After looking at this I think I need to pick myself up some agave syrop, does it have a bettter shelf life than homemade simple?

The stuff I use has a long shelf life; something like 2 years.

[Dennis]

I made a bunch of margaritas several weeks ago. I think Cointreau is important in this drink, maybe even a touch moreso than the tequila. I ended up liking silver/blanco tequila and thought anything that was aged was wasted in this drink. Sauzo Blanco is really quite decent and won't break the bank at around $15.

2 oz Tequila
1 1/3 oz Cointreau
2/3 oz fresh lime juice Shake with ice, and strain into a cocktail glass
Garnish with a wedge of lime