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SPIRITED SELECTIONS: National Margarita Day

Non-Traditional Twists On The Margarita
By Nick Dean

Today is National Margarita Day and we’re marking the occasion with a whole bunch of ideas on how best to put your tequila to use!

But first, the obvious questions: National Margarita Day in February!? What’s the reason? Who comes up with this stuff!?

Well, head over to your favorite search engine and read up on the history of a man named Todd McCalla, who’s just a guy from Ohio — but more importantly, he’s a guy who loves Margaritas. You see, more than a decade ago, Todd launched a website and declared February 22nd to be National Margarita Day. And so now it’s one of those legit quirky themed calendar days. And despite its strange origin, we’re not letting it pass by un-remarked upon.

Check out our choices for a Blanco, Reposado and Mezcal to mark the occasion!

So, what makes a Margarita!?

Just as with so many of the other major cocktails (Martini, Manhattan, Old Fashioned, etc), what makes a Margarita can be intensely personal in terms of ingredients and brands of choice! But trace the drink back to its origin and you’re going to find a recipe calling for three ingredients: Tequila, Triple Sec & Lime Juice.

It’s really that easy! Or complicated… Depending on how you want to look at it. Having just three ingredients means a minimal amount of prep work, yes, but it also leaves little room to hide behind — meaning that any small error in proportions can be all the more apparent. But fret not, all you home bartenders… finding the right proportions for you is half the fun, specifically because it can mean having to make yourself a couple of ‘em just to get the recipe right.

Of course, just as with so many of the other major cocktails, the Margarita has seen many modifications throughout the years — from neon syrups on store shelves to restaurants that swap the lime for lemon juice or orange juice. Not to mention all the rainbow colored, fruit candy flavored sugar bombs dispensed from Slushee machines throughout the country.

And don’t get me wrong, you’ll never catch me turning down a strawberry or raspberry flavored glass of chain restaurant tequila hot mess when the situation arises. However, making myself a Margarita at home is a much different affair. Most times, what constitutes an at-home Margarita for myself is completely dependent on what I have on hand — meaning sometimes it might use another liqueur in place of triple sec or the addition of muddled berries for flavor.

MODIFYING THE MARGARITA
Listen to enough podcasts made by bartenders or other people in the industry and you’ll here the phrase “Mr. Potato Head” to describe when people swap one ingredient in a recipe for another from the same category.

Try for instance changing any one of the following ingredients in a Margarita to come up with something different — though change too many and you stretch the definition of the word (which you surely wouldn't the first to do).

•Change the tequila
•Change the liqueur 
•Change the citrus
•Change the salt

TOMMY’S MARGARITA 

One of the best know twists on a Margarita comes from a San Francisco restaurant called Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant. 

Created in 1990, the Tommy’s Margarita swaps triple sec for Agave syrup — meaning it omits the orange liqueur entirely.

To make the Tommy’s Margarita, shake all ingredients over ice and strain into a salt-rimmed rocks glass with fresh ice.

During my time as a bartender at Forte The Restaurant, I've made more than a few specialty Margaritas for myself and customers.

Below are just a few of the more interesting recipes I've whipped up in recent years. 

RECIPES

AVOCADO MARGARITA

Seems strange, right!? An avocado!? In a Margarita!? But whether you’re a fan of avocados or not, I recommend giving this drink a try. The avocado doesn’t so much add flavor to the cocktail as it does change the body and mouthfeel.
 
INGREDIENTS
•2oz 123 Organic Blanco Tequila
•1oz lime juice
•.5 triple sec
•.One-quarter of an avocado
•Salt & spice rim
 
PREPARATION
For this drink, muddle one-quarter of an avocado into a shaker tin with tequila, lime juice and triple sec — then add ice and shake vigorously to liquify the avocado. Before pouring over fresh ice, rim a rocks glass with something more than salt, such as a blend of salt, pepper, chile powder and what other spices you might have. I use a habanero powder in addition to the salt, pepper and chile powder. The avocado in this drink adds a creamy sweetness which works well with a spicy rim on the rocks glass.
 
CARROT GINGER MARGARITA
For this Margarita (pictured at the top of this blog post), add a hefty pour of carrot-ginger juice into your shaker tin with all the basic Margarita ingredients:

INGREDIENTS
•2oz La Gritona Reposado Tequila 
•1oz lime juice
•.5 triple sec
•.5oz simple syrup
•2oz carrot ginger juice 

PREPARATION
For this drink, I shook all five ingredients in a shaker tin with ice and strained into a salt-rimmed pint glass full of fresh ice — and garnished with a lemon wheel.

MEZCAL ESPRESSO MARGARITA

Pictured below, this coffee-forward Margarita scales back on the citrus while leaving a scant little bit of lime juice in the mix to subtly accentuate the tequila and coffee flavors. The triple sec similarly works very well with the coffee flavor in this receipe.

INGREDIENTS
•1.5oz Bozal Espadin Mezcal
•1oz Toccasana Liqour Negra
•.5oz triple sec
•.25oz lime juice
•.5oz chilled coffee
•2 dashes Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate Bitters

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PREPARATION

Chille a stemmed cocktail glass such as a coupe. Shake all ingredients over ice and strain into the chilled cocktail glass. Want to take this drink one-step further!? Try making it with egg white, or thicken it with a foaming agent such as Fee Brothers Fee Foam!

CHOCOLATE CREAM MEZCAL MARGARITA

INGREDIENTS
•1.5oz Bozal Espadin Mezcal
•1oz Averna Amaro
•.5oz Vespertino Tequila Crema
•.5oz triple sec
•.25oz lime juice
•2 dashes Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate Bitters

PREPARATION

Chille a stemmed cocktail glass such as a coupe. Shake all ingredients over ice and strain into the chilled cocktail glass. Want to take this drink one-step further!? Try making it with egg white, or thicken it with a foaming agent such as Fee Brothers Fee Foam !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TEQUILAS

ABOUT 123 ORGANIC BLANCO TEQUILA
Marked by an earthy, citrus and herbal character, Blanco (Uno) is tequila in its most natural state and ideal as the basis for organic cocktails and sipping. Both the quality and purity of thjis Blanco (Uno) tequila are essential to achieving the complex evolution that takes place in its aged versions – Reposado (Dos) and Anejo (Tres) tequilas.

750ml
$46.99

Click HERE to view 123 Organic Blanco Tequila on our website!

ABOUT LA GRITONA REPOSADO TEQUILA
La Gritona Reposado is a subtle and distinctive 100% blue agave tequila distilled by Melly Barajas at her small distillery (NOM 1533) in Valle de Guadalupe in the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico. The 9-10 year old mature agave is grown in the iron-rich red soil of the Jalisco highlands that has been cultivated at the height of it’s sugar production and is put into ovens within 24 hours of being cut.

The agave is steam cooked in two thick-walled earthen ovens for 24 hours and then allowed to rest for another 24 hours before crushing. The collected liquid is naturally fermented in open steel vats at a rate that is dictated by the local air temperature. Once it starts to swim, it is distilled to the company's nascent silver twice. Once the distilled silver has rested, it is then put in re-used American whiskey barrels (Jack Daniels) for 8 months before filtering and bottling.

FROM LA GRITONA
We char our barrels very lightly if necessary and we allow the barrels to be used for other rested tequilas prior to our resting period so that the residual oak, the residual whiskey, and the leached color from both can be as stunted as possible while our reposado ages. We do not use copper stills or a tahona, and we do not diffuse or use an autoclave. Our agave is crushed with steel shredders after cooking and we distill our liquid in steel stills. Every step of production takes place under one roof and our facility is overseen by a small staff of local women that work each process from start to finish.

We currently bottle an average of 12,500 liters per batch. All of the agave remnants that are left over after production are given to local farmers to use as cattle feed. Our bottles are hand blown with recycled Mexican glass in the Guadalajara municipality of Tonolá, an hour away from the distillery.

750ml
$29.99

Click HERE to view La Gritona Reposado Tequila on our website!

ABOUT BOZAL ESPADIN BARRIL MEXICANO MEZCAL ENSAMBLE

A slightly smoky, yet herbaceous undertone rests on the center of the palate, while citrus and floral notes from the Barril are introduced and strengthened by the warm viscose finish of the Mexicano. This is a light and easy sipping mezcal, which will delight and surprise you with its complex lingering finish.

750ml
$45.99

Click HERE to view Bozal Espadin on our website!

 

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