Happy National Tequila Day: Grow Up and Drink Like A Man!

Today is national tequila day, which should be a national holiday for this king of the distilled arts. Our sister site Guanabee has offered a tasty girly drink made with tequila to celebrate this important holiday. That’s all well and good, but those fruity concoctions will not satiate the thirst of a manly caballero. In that vein let us take a look at tequila drinks that will put hair on your polongas.

First, there is nothing better than drinking tequila straight up in it’s pure form. You might be saying, “Dude, gross! Tequila tastes like shit.” You are probably thinking about some cheap tequila from a plastic jug that you probably drank in college. Countless nights of shots in clubs and Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville Bar and Grill in Cancun, that got you pukey drunk and possibly laid.

No. You are an adult, you need to start drinking like one. Tequila is a fine spirit and properly distilled and aged it can be as smooth as an expensive scotch or brandy. Show some respect, it should be sipped, not shot so you can appreciate the complex flavors on your tongue. Get yourself a long shot glass, called a caballito or a decent aperitif glass that will allow for a nicer sipping experience than your old Hard Rock Cafe shot glass.

Tequila is a distillation of the Blue Agave cactus. There are three kinds of tequila: silver, añejo, and reposado. Silver tequila is distilled once an has usually been made recently, and is clear in color. It is the best tequila for mixing as it is a little less smooth than the other varieties. Añejo has a honey color, as it has been aged for a couple of years in oak barrels that gives its’ the light brown color. Añejo is smoother than silver tequila and is very nice sipped in a glass, perhaps with a twist of lime. The last is the king daddy of tequila, reposado, which is aged in barrels for approximately 7 years. It is smooth and sweet and has a dark brown color similar to scotch. This must not be mixed and should be treated like a fine whiskey or brandy (it is also the most expensive, so don’t break this out at your next poker game. Your buddies won’t appreciate it.)

Here are some good ones:

• Silver: Herradura Tequila Hacienda Del Cristero, Patron Silver.
• Añejo: El Mayor Tequila Añejo, Corralejo Tequila Añejo.
• Reposado: 1800 Reposado Tequila, Sauza Cien Años, Herradura Tequila Reposado

In the beautiful town of Tequila, in the province of Jalisco, tequila is drunk with a chaser called sangrita (not sangria, but sangrita.) It is a mixture of tomato juice, spices, and citrus that make a nice palate cleanser of fortified goodness while drinking a good tequila. Here is a recipe:

Sangrita

• 4 cups of freshly squeezed orange juice (no Tang)
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 cup tomato juice
• tablespoon of salt
• Chile piquin to taste

What about the margarita? This is can be a manly drink, but not from some horrible slushy machine of day glow green mush or some horrid concoction with beer your hipster buddies in Williamsburg made you one time. The classic margarita is a simple cocktail that can be refreshing drink on a hot day, and an effective cocktail at losing a ladies inhibitions. Here is a family recipe [Ed. Note: From my Cuban-Texan, or CuTex familia]:

Classic Margarita

• the juice of three limes
• 2 shots of silver tequila
• 1 shot of triple sec
• 2 teapoons simple syrup  or sugar (simple syrup is two parts sugar and one part water, brung to a boil and cooled.)
• (Makes one glass)
  It is perfection, but if you are feeling daring:

  CuTex Margarita

• Same as above and then add:
• 1 shot Matusalem or Havana Club rum [Ed. Note: I told you it was Cuban.]
• 1 shot Grey Goose Vodka.

There are a couple of other decent man cocktails made with tequila. This is not some bullshit made with strawberries or apple slices. Check it:

Petrolero

• 1-1/2 ounces of añejo tequila
• 1 ounce of lime juice
• 1 halved Serrano chile (with seeds)

Tequila Sour

• 1-1/2 ounce silver tequila
• 2 ounces of lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of simple syrup or sugar

Tequila Sunrise

• 2 shots of silver tequila
• 4 shots orange juice
• 1 shot grenadine

So, go forth, our brothers, and celebrate this great day by joining the Aztecs, Toltecs and Teotihuacanos and worship at the feet of the Blue Agave!