MxMo XV

[eje]

If any of you read (or write) blogs which cover cocktails, you might know that Paul over at Cocktail Chronicles has been organizing a monthly online cocktail event he calls Mixology Mondays.

This month's event is being hosted Matt over on his blog My Bar, Your Bar blog. The theme is Tequila Cocktails.

To quote Matt:

Saints preserve us…it’s time for Mixology Monday again! Thanks to everyone in the cocktail blogosphere, My Bar, Your Bar has the honor of hosting this month’s event. The theme: Tequila! And why not? May has Cinco de Mayo where everyone gets hammered on tequila shots, margaritas, and cheap Mexican beer. So gang, it’s up to us to bring a little class (or not) to this under appreciated liquor and show the world what the possibilities are. I think we can do better than a lime wedge and pinch of salt, no?

If you would like to participate, please write up any cocktail made with Tequila in this topic before Monday, May 14th at midnight. I will compile a list of cocktails that are posted and mail them to the organizer.

I would post some exciting exclamation in Spanish here, if I hadn't learned that nearly every expression my "friends" taught me is embarrassingly vulgar.

[bostonapothecary]

la mojada.... (the wetness)

2oz. "tequila por mi amante" (my recipe for aphrodisiac flower tequila and an exercise of synonymous flavor depth.... anejo into apple into manzanilla (earth apple) into damiana (baja aphrodisiac flower) all sweetened to a calculated degree with the nectar of the agave....)

.5oz. creole shrub (nothing else has enough sincerity for the drink...)

juice of a lime! (one oz.)

shake it up, serve in a canning jar, then propostion any pretty lady drinking it with the dirtiest thing you can think of and have your barback cover the rest of the night for you....

damiana flowers can be dangerously bitter if not properly handled.... i seem to have gotten it down and fly through liters of the stuff.... the liqueur has an evocative herbal quality that is in harmony with the tequila's natural character....the nectar is merely there to carry the flavor and stretch the finish giving you time to savor the depth.... at no point is it cloying on its own.... the half ounce of shrub must be measured because over pouring would be disasterous....

garnish the drink with a decent size wedge of lime.... if she uses it, she is sweet enough, likes a tart drink and is therefore my kind of woman....

[ThinkingBartender]

A Mixology Monday about Tequila drinks is a lot harder than it looks. Ey Caramba! So few good tequila cocktails.

Though I have ended up settling on the Tequila Cosmopolitan as my choice of entrant.

Cheers!

George

[bostonapothecary]

A Mixology Monday about Tequila drinks is a lot harder than it looks. Ey Caramba! So few good tequila cocktails.

Though I have ended up settling on the Tequila Cosmopolitan as my choice of entrant.

Cheers!

George

←

isn't tequila cosmo commonly known as "rude cosmo" ?? i'd drink one....

eastern standard does something called the jaguar....

blanco with green chartreuse and amer picon i think....

it sounds completely decadent and is probably only drunk by people that use those cigarette extender holder things.... and drive alfas, MGs, and fiats etc....

[KatieLoeb]

An oldie but goodie and one of my favorite summer beverages:

Diablo

2 oz. Tequila

.75 oz. Creme de Cassis

.75 oz. lime juice

Ginger ale

Build in a Collins glass, give it one shake and top with ginger ale and a lime wedge.

Muy refrescoso!

[Morgenthaler]

I've posted my entry over at my site:

http://www.jeffreymorgenthaler.com/2007/mi...monday-tequila/

It's a silver tequila collins with grapefruit bitters. It's been very popular at my bar for the past couple of weeks already.

Cheers!

[johnder]

One of my favorite tequilla cocktails --

Prado

2 oz tequilla

1 oz lime

1/2 maraschino

1 egg white

Shake, up, lime wheel garnish

[plattetude]

A new one I concocted for the occasion:

Tequila Centeno

1 1/2 oz reposado tequila (El Tesoro)

3/4 oz rye (Wild Turkey 101)

1 tsp maraschino liqueur (Luxardo)

2 dashes orange bitters

Stir over ice, strain

And then there's the Roja Blanco (I think that's the name) from Death & Co, which is reposado tequila, Campari, bianco vermouth, and maraschino. Don't know the proportions necessarily, but it's mighty fine. I recreated with 2 parts tequila and one part of each of the others, to pretty suitable effect.

Christopher

[Dan Ryan]

Ah, the nuances and challenges of tequila (a silver 100% agave of course). How to let the agave character shine through, while building layers of flavour. Is salt essential? Perhaps not, but it certainly can round out the mouthfeel.

Anyway, three entries, and a variation or two. Hope these lead to some experimentation, for all of us…

The Sadler

1½ shots tequila (I used Herradura blanco in all of these, and a shot is 25 ml or so)

1½ shots lime juice

1½ shots celery syrup

a drop or two of lime bitters

Shake with ice, and serve straight up in a cocktail glass.

Named after Italian chef Claudio Sadler, who produces one of the world’s greatest desserts using the same ingredients. To make the celery syrup, simply simmer 400 g of celery, 200 g of sugar, 500 ml of water and a good pinch of salt in a pan for 40 minutes, incorporating the zest of 1 lime for the last five minutes or so, and then purée. I used my homemade lime bitters, but you could substitute orange or lemon bitters, or just add a bit more lime zest to the syrup. For a variation, add 12 or so mint leaves, a spoonful of crème de bananes and an extra half-shot of lime juice before shaking.

The Miramare (aka the Roselle Roselle)

¾ shot tequila

1 shot strawberry soup

1 shot very strong hibiscus tea

1 spoon Cointreau

cava or prosecco

Chill the first four ingredients (or stir with plentiful ice, but be careful, you don’t really want any dilution), pour into a flute, stir well, and top up with the ice-cold sparkling wine of your choice.

Exquisite blood-red colours, with a delightful mousse to be admired and savoured. Make the strawberry soup by dicing some top-quality fresh strawberries into a large glass bowl with a sprinkle of sugar, just the lightest sprinkle, covering with clingfilm, and placing over a saucepan of simmering water for a good hour, before passing through a sieve. Leave plenty of pulp behind. For an extra layer of flavour, infuse some basil in the warm soup (purple basil works particularly well here). Remove the leaves before serving. Check the ingredients for sweet/sour balance before you add the wine: it must be sweet enough to cope with the bubbly you’re using. Add more sugar to the hibiscus tea (which really does need to be very strong) if it’s not.

The Azalea

1½ shots tequila

1½ shots grapefruit juice, lightly salted

¾ shot Campari

¾ shot Cointreau

Shake with ice, and serve straight up in a cocktail glass.

Lip-smackingly bitter refreshment that will leave you wanting more. I tried some fresh ginger in here too, but it shifted the balance of the drink slightly, and needed correcting with the liqueurs. But the unadulterated version is better anyway, or the first six or so were…

[eje]

I've been intruiged by Juleps lately.

The confluence of Derby Day and Cinqo de Mayo this year, allowed some interesting variations, including a Tequila Julep.

On the DrinkBoy, a gentleman who calls himself "Theurbanbartender" documented an inspired sounding Pineapple Julep.

In a julep cup take a handfull of fresh mint leaves-muddle gently then add a couple of chunks of macerated pineapple( pineapple chunks that have been soaking in sugar for a day or so) 20mls Pinapple cordial. Muddle this gently again only just to break down the pineapple chunks then add crushed ice and 25mls bourbon. I used Woodford Reserve but I think its always down to personal taste. Gently pull all ingredients up thru the ice in a lifting motion top up with more crushed ice and then add another 25mls bourbon follow the above and then garnish with a small forest of mint and a long slender pineapple stick two small straws and bob's your uncle and if your unlucky he's your aunt.  Please dont lynch me

That also sounded really awesome.

I was thinking I might combine the ideas!

However, when I was waiting for the bus the other day, I noticed an hispanic gentleman eating what appeared to be pineapple in some sort of red chile sauce. I remembered that sweet and spice are not necessarily exclusive values in Latin culture.

Now I had an idea that I could get my teeth into. I would make a Julep-like drink; but, try to use ingredients Native to the New World!

Spiced Pineapple Julep-ish Tequila Drink (sorry not feeling very inventive today)

Prep Work:

1 Day before, peel and chop up a half a pineapple and put it in a quart container. Crush 2 tsp of allspice and add it to the container. Seed and wash 2 dried red chiles, (I used Chile Negros; but, anything Ancho-ish would be fine,) cut them in strips and add to the container. Dissolve 1 cup of sugar* and 1 cone of piloncillo in 1 cup of water and pour over the pineapple mixture. Shake to combine and let sit overnight.

Before you go to bed, put your large julep glass in the freezer.

The next day, strain off the liquid and reserve the pineapple. We'll call this "Spiced Pineapple Syrup".

Cocktail Proper:

1 oz spiced pineapple syrup

3 oz Blanco Tequila (Herradura Blanco)

Chopped Pineapple (I'm not sure how picky you are. You can either use the pineapple from the syrup or chop more fresh. The pineapple from the syrup will have small crunchy pieces of allspice and/or chili in it. Depending on your perspective, this might be bad or it might be good.)

6 sprigs mint**

Juice 2 key limes

Pineapple Spear

Mezcal for float (Don Amado, Reposado)

Take your julep glass out of the freezer. Add Spiced pineapple syrup to the glass and 3 sprigs mint still on stems, and a tablespoon or two of pineapple. Gently crush the pineapple, syrup and mint. Fill glass with crushed ice. Add 3 oz of blanco tequila and the juice of 2 key limes. Churn mixture to combine. Withdraw mint sprigs. Top up with crushed ice, and churn again. Float on a bit of mezcal, garnish with 3 mint sprigs, the pineapple spear, and stick in a straw.

Tasty! I don't know, if Bob's not your uncle, you might ask your Mom about Jose...

*OK, sugar isn't native to the New World. It's originally from Southern Asia. I was too lazy to run to the store and buy Agave Nectar. At least I used a type of Mexican raw sugar called piloncillo!

**Also, I don't believe mint is Native to the New World. I briefly considered Cilantro; but, I think that is from China. I considered a couple others; but, they were all too hard to find or obscure, so I went back to the traditional mint.

Edited May 14, 2007 by eje (log)

[stickyii]

Karen,

The Diablo is quite tasty! I just found a bottle of Marie Brizard Creme de Cassis on my travels. Have you found a reliable source in PA?

My MxMo post can be found here: http://www.kaiserpenguin.com/mxmo-tequila-acapulco/

Cheers!

[KatieLoeb]

Hi Rick:

I'm assuming you meant me in your post to "Karen". The Diablo is quite tasty. I have to thank my local barkeep for introducing me to that old classic. Quite the refreshing and easy summer beverage.

As for Creme de Cassis, I have a bit at home from an old bottle procured from a former employer, but as for a reliable source, I usually have the real Cassis de Bourgogne at work and have it ordered SLO when necessary. A quick search indicates that only the Jacquin's low end cassis is available in the PLCB stores, and any of the better more authentic stuff is all SLO. The price point for the Marie Brizard and the Maison de Lamartine Cassis de Bourgogne is almost identical at $21.89 and $22.19 respectively. I understand that the Guyot Creme de Cassis de Dijon at $29.19 is also quite delicious, although I don't think I've tasted that one. Not certain about the finer points of Cassis de Bourgogne vs. Cassis de Dijon. I'm sure there's a difference and an explanation, but I don't know it.

[thirtyoneknots]

I'm not much of a fancier of Tequila, although it is something I am trying to learn to appreciate. Long work hours and short sleep hours have left me with little time to experiment at home lately, although I did recently create a drink for one of the waiters at work. The name I call it to him is an inside joke that would probably offend most people out of context, so here I'll just name it for him instead.

Weaver Special

1.5 oz Tequila (Sauza Hornitos is the house pour)

.5-.75 oz lime (about 1/2 lime)

.5 oz Pama (it also works well without, or sub a generous tsp grenadine)

2+ dashes Orange bitters (Regans)

Build in tall glass on the rocks, top with tonic water.

Not terrible, which from me is high praise for a tequila drink.

-Andy

Edit to add: in hindsight I realised this is a spin on the Diablo, though I suspect it tastes very little like it.

Edited May 15, 2007 by thirtyoneknots (log)

[KatieLoeb]

A spin, perhaps. But the Cassis is so much thicker and sweeter than the Pama that it's really an entirely different drink.

I have Pama on my bar at work. I like it OK. But I qualify that by saying I find that Pama adds about the same amount of flavor to a drink as an equal sized splash of cranberry juice, whose flavor I find indistinguishable from the Pama at many times the price. I've never heard of anyone ordering Pama neat or on the rocks, it just seems to be one of those products that was produced because Pomegranate was a "fashionable" flavor last year. <shrug> At about $26/bottle (at least in PA where I live and buy liquor) the Pama is just expensive. I use it for color and flavor because I have it available to me, but it seems very cost ineffective in terms of what it provides to a cocktail. I'd rather use a splash of POM juice and get better color and flavor at a fraction of the cost.

I'll have to experiment with a POM based or enhanced tequila cocktail next time I'm at work.

[thirtyoneknots]

A spin, perhaps.  But the Cassis is so much thicker and sweeter than the Pama that it's really an entirely different drink.

I have Pama on my bar at work.  I like it OK.  But I qualify that by saying I find that Pama adds about the same amount of flavor to a drink as an equal sized splash of cranberry juice, whose flavor I find indistinguishable from the Pama at many times the price.  I've never heard of anyone ordering Pama neat or on the rocks, it just seems to be one of those products that was produced because Pomegranate was a "fashionable" flavor last year. <shrug>  At about $26/bottle (at least in PA where I live and buy liquor) the Pama is just expensive.  I use it for color and flavor because I have it available to me, but it seems very cost ineffective in terms of what it provides to a cocktail.  I'd rather use a splash of POM juice and get better color and flavor at a fraction of the cost.

I'll have to experiment with a POM based or enhanced tequila cocktail next time I'm at work.

←

In the interest of full disclosure, the sole bottle of Pama was present when the restaraunt opened in January and is at about 20% right now. When depleted it will not be replaced. For about the same price as a bottle of Pama, one can make a gallon of high quality grenadine, which will have a richer and more balanced flavor. I really don't care much for Pama, and when I used it here I was looking for a way to get rid of it. I really don't find the flavor profile very mixable, as liqueurs go.

Brizzard Cassis de Bordeaux, I love. I'm actually looking forward to trying the Diablo (probably when the girlfriend is around to finish it if I don't like it :-P).

-Andy

[bostonapothecary]

The Miramare (aka the Roselle Roselle)

¾ shot tequila

1 shot strawberry soup

1 shot very strong hibiscus tea

1 spoon Cointreau

cava or prosecco

Chill the first four ingredients (or stir with plentiful ice, but be careful, you don’t really want any dilution), pour into a flute, stir well, and top up with the ice-cold sparkling wine of your choice.

Exquisite blood-red colours, with a delightful mousse to be admired and savoured. Make the strawberry soup by dicing some top-quality fresh strawberries into a large glass bowl with a sprinkle of sugar, just the lightest sprinkle, covering with clingfilm, and placing over a saucepan of simmering water for a good hour, before passing through a sieve. Leave plenty of pulp behind. For an extra layer of flavour, infuse some basil in the warm soup (purple basil works particularly well here). Remove the leaves before serving. Check the ingredients for sweet/sour balance before you add the wine: it must be sweet enough to cope with the bubbly you’re using. Add more sugar to the hibiscus tea (which really does need to be very strong) if it’s not.

a great drink! but the mexican's call hibiscus "flor de jamaica"..... i've been doing a study of the flowers across cultures. it is huge everywhere but not well understood in america....

my favorite use... bottled jarritos "jamaica" soda & blanco tequila...

[stickyii]

Katie!

I'm not sure why I addressed you as "Karen." Perhaps trying too many MxMo recipes in one night

Are the cassis SLOs available in individual bottles?

I just did a few searches and see that Marie Brizard Orange Curacao is now back as an SLO - rejoice! I'm working to see if they can get the Lemon Hart Demerara 151.

Thanks again for all the great info.

[KatieLoeb]

Rick:

That's OK. I confess I've had a few Diablos tonight at various venues (including my own kitchen) so I understand how that happens.

Don't know what the deal is with the SLO situation and individual bottles of cassis. When one looks up "cassis" on the PLCB website, none of the available SLO products list a minimum number of bottles per order, which some SLO's do, so I have to believe that one can just order one bottle of whichever cassis strikes their fancy. I just had this conversation at the bar at Southwark earlier tonight, and the concensus is that any SLO cassis that's costs more than about $20/bottle is bound to be good. I'm sure there are subtle differences, but they probably aren't worth exploring in this context.

Andy - I suspect you won't need the girlfriend around to finish that Diablo for you. They go down pretty easy and I think you'll enjoy it just fine on it's own. If it's too sweet for you just up the lime juice a bit to balance. The flavors go very well together.

[eje]

Wow, pretty successful Mixology Monday this month!

Thanks to everybody for contributing!

I'm looking forward to trying some of these in the near future.

Here's the Round Up over at My Bar, Your Bar:

Tequila Monday!