The Importance of Being Ernesto

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Recently, I did a post of recent acquisitons which included Amaro CioCiaro. In my initial few words about CioCiaro, I said that I was going to use it in Tiki. I totally still am and already have some Tiki recipes with it, but what I failed to mention was that I was going to use it with Tequila!

“Oh, sweet, beautiful Amaro CioCiaro, how Orange thou art!” -a short laudation by Home Bar Girl

When I get a new liqueur or any sort, I like to think how I can use it in lieu of something else. In the case of Tequila, I wanted to use it in lieu of Cointreau in the Tequila + Citrus + Orange Liqueur format. (Love you forever Cointreau, there will never be another!) I picked an Añejo Tequila (Corralejo is my jam!) as the richer notes would pair better with an Amaro than say, Blanco Tequila. It’s heavenly! You could probably use a good Reposado and it would work just as well.

CioCiaro & Santa Maria

Goodbye Piney, Alpiney Santa Maria, helloooooo CioCiaro!

The Importance of Being Ernesto

  • 1 3/4 oz Corralejo Añejo Tequila
  • 3/4 oz Amaro CioCiaro
  • 3/4 oz Grapefruit Juice
  • 1 dropper Brooklyn Hemispherical Sriracha Bitters or any other Chili Spiced bitters
  • Garnish: Orange peel and a Pinch of Salt

Combine ingredients over ice and shake until proper dilution and chilling have occurred. Double strain into coupe, express Orange peel and garnish. Drop a few bits of Salt into the glass.

Cheers!

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Don’t you want this right now? Like, right now/right now/right now!

National Margarita Day with Casa Noble Crystal

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February 22 is National Margarita Day and I have been #blessed y’all, #BLESSED with this fabulous bottle of Casa Noble Crystal to make Margaritas. I was totally blown away by how tasty this Blanco Tequila is and will try to describe it in a few words.

  • On the Nose: Pineapple, Strawberry, Grasses
  • On the Tongue: Banana, Citrus, Chocolate, Nutty, Agave
  • In the Mouth: Smooth and velvety, almost no “Tequila burn”

In other words, Casa Noble Crystal is a truly special Tequila. It’s definitely unlike any other Blanco Tequila I’ve ever tasted and therefore, the first thing I did was make a classic Margarita with it. I highly recommend taking this approach when testing a new Spirit. Like, when I get a new Rum, I always make a Daiquiri with it. This way I know how the Spirit is going to interact with Citrus, sweetness, etc.

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Casa Noble Crystal Margarita

  • 2 oz Casa Noble Crystal Blanco Tequila
  • 1/2 oz Cointreau (yes, that is Cointreau in a jar cause I live in a tiny apartment)
  • 1/2 oz Organic Agave Nectar
  • 1 oz Lime Juice
  • Garnish: Hawaiian Pink Salt and Lime Wheel

In tin, combine Tequila, Cointreau, Agave Nectar and Lime Juice over ice and shake it baby! Rim Rocks glass with Salt, add ice and strain drink into glass. Lime wheel at the end. Fabulous, classic, yum.

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Once I knew how this beautiful Tequila interacted in a classic Margarita, I got fancy. Mint and Grapefruit fancy to be specific.

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Pample-Menthe Margarita

  • 2 oz Casa Noble Crystal Blanco Tequila
  • 1/2 oz Cointreau
  • 1/2 oz Organic Agave Nectar
  • 3/4 oz Ruby Red Grapefuit Juice
  • 1/2 oz Lime Juice
  • 2 dashes Regan’s Orange Bitters
  • 5-6 Mint Leaves
  • Garnish: Hawaiian Pink Salt, Mint Bouquet

In tin, muddle Mint leaves, Grapefruit Juice, Lime juice and Agave Nectar. Dry shake to incorporate ingredients. Add Tequila, Cointreau, Orange Bitters, Ice and short shake again. Rim rocks glass with salt, add ice and double strain drink into glass. Lastly, add Mint Bouquet.

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Hello Pineapple Spear Bunny Ears. 

Then I decided I wanted to bring out the Banana and Pineapple notes from the Casa Noble Crystal Tequila. I recalled that whole month of #TikiTheSnowAway and said to myself, “I’m gonna do it, I’m gonna make a Tiki Margarita”. This is also the first drink that I consulted The Flavor Bible and learned Coconut Milk and Vanilla Bean syrup go very well together!

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Island Time Margarita*

  • 2 oz Casa Noble Crystal Blanco Tequila
  • 1/2 oz Cointreau
  • 1/2 oz Vanilla Bean Syrup
  • 1 oz Pineapple Juice
  • 1/2 oz Lime Juice
  • 3/4 oz Coconut Milk
  • 5-6 Banana Slices
  • 2 dashes Angostura Bitters
  • Garnish: Hawaiian Pink Salt, 2 Pineapple Spears

In tin, muddle Pineapple Juice, Lime Juice, Coconut Milk, Vanilla Bean Syrup and Banana slices. Dry shake until ingredients are incorporated. Add Tequila, Cointreau, Bitters and Ice and shake again. Rim rocks glass with salt and add ice. Double strain drink into glass and garnish with Pineapple Spears.

*Honestly, this is the best Margarita I’ve ever made. It might even be the best Tiki drink I’ve ever made.

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Let’s just look at this again, shall we? Sooooo dreamy, so tasty. 

Thanks to Casa Noble for their magical Crystal Blanco Tequila and thanks to the Baddish Group for the opportunity to use it for National Margarita Day!

Lemme See That El Camino

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Whoop! Here’s another post where I get to talk about the Home Bar Girl Tequila Challenge and Something Awesome. Last time the Something Awesome was Penelope Cruz, this time it’s that oh so sexy El Camino.

1. The Tequila Challenge: to encourage us Home Bar Gurls and Dudes to think of Tequila as more than “shots!” and/or “Margarita Time”. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a good Marg as much as the rest of the world but Tequila is versatile! Think about using Tequila in place of Gin or Whiskey in your cocktails. Pair it with Vermouth, Amari, Bitters and Chartreuse Jaune. Stir it, Shake it, Serve it, Sip it. Yep, Sip your Tequila, don’t Shoot it! If this means you need to stop buying gross Tequila like José or Patrón, then please do so immediately. Mmmk? So many other tasty Tequilas await!

2. The El Camino: I love the Early-70s El Camino SS. I think they’re awesome muscle cars and despite being half car/half truck, I still think they’re dead sexy.  Super Sport? Quit teasing, just lemme drive it! And dropped? Hot damn, gimme that Lowrider! Perhaps my inner SoCal Mexican is shining through a bit too much with all this El Camino talk. I would even say that the El Camino is the Mullet of the South Western USA. Business in the front, Party in the back, but oh so much party in the back!

1973 El Camino SS

This is not my car, I want this car, it will be mine. Photo via www.speedsports.net

Now, what does the badass El Camino SS have to do with a badass Tequila cocktail? You’ll have to make one to find out.

Lemme See That El Camino

  • 2 oz Blanco Tequila
  • 3/4 oz Averna Amaro
  • 1 oz Grapefruit Juice
  • 1/2 oz Agave Nectar
  • 1 dash Hella Bitter Citrus Bitters
  • Orange peel

In tin, combine Tequila, Averna, Grapefruit Juice, Agave and Bitters. Dry shake until Agave has dissolved. Add ice and shake shake shake again. Express Orange Peel and garnish.

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Volver

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Feliz Cinco de Mayo 2016 y’all! I’ve decided to post this drink from a couple of years ago cause it’s one of my faves. Salud!

Yes. Yes! YEAAAAAASSS! I’ve been waiting for a post like this. This is the post where I get to talk about Penélope Cruz and my own personal Tequila Challenge.

First, the Tequila Challenge. Well, here I am, a California Mexican American living in New York City and let me tell y’all, people don’t take Tequila seriously here. In fact, most of my friends usually shudder at the mention of Tequila. “Ohhhhh, I can’t have Tequila, it makes me act crazy.” “Noooooo, I’ll never have Tequila again, last time I did, I blacked out and got into a huge fight at a bar in the LES.” Sure, sure you did sweetie. Honestly, for a city that loves to drink obscene amounts of whiskey and rum, people seem to get week in the knees as soon as I suggest having a drink with Tequila.

Well you know what? Tequila doesn’t really affect you any differently than Vodka, Gin, Rum or even Whiskey. You’ve just had awful Tequila or you just take SHOTS. In fact, I’m sure you’ve had so many “shots” of José or Patrón and after having all these SHOTS of Tequila, you felt a little bit crazy. You probably felt a little bit violent. You maybe even blacked out.

You’ve been drinking Tequila wrong.

My Tequila Challenge is to encourage us Home Bar Girls and Dudes to enjoy Tequila served “up”, “short”, “neat” and “on the rocks” in the same way we’d drink Gin, Whiskey, or even Aged Rum. Good Tequila is delicious, flavourful and much more fun to mix with than something bland and boring like Vodka. We should consider making cocktails with Tequila to be an art form, not some lame excuse to get drunk as quickly as possible. Sip Tequila, don’t shoot it.

Second, Penélope Cruz. There isn’t really much to say, she’s like the sexiest lady who has lived in the past 40 years and she seems like she’d be a helluva lot of fun to have Tequila cocktails with. When I made this drink for my girlfriend, she tasted it, I asked her what we should name it and she said, “SOMETHING TO DO WITH PENÉLOPE CRUZ.” Ok, you got it babe. We decided to name the drink Volver porque nosotros amamos Pedro Almodóvar y Penélope Cruz para siempre.

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Volver

  • 1 oz Reposado Tequila (I love to mix with Espolón Tequila)
  • 1/4 – 1/2 oz Ancho Chile infused Reposado Tequila*, depends on how spicy you like it 🙂
  • 1/2 oz St-Germain
  • 1/2 oz Punt e Mes
  • 2 Dashes Orange Bitters
  • 2 Pineapple Chunks

In tin, muddle pineapple and add remaining ingredients. Shake, shake, shake over cracked ice. Double Strain into rocks glass over one big rock. Salud!

*For the Ancho Chile infused Tequila: place one dried Ancho Chile Pepper into a Medium sized Mason Jar, fill with Reposado Tequila and let steep for approximately two hours. Strain. Seriously Nice Spice.

Fred & Ginger

Perhaps my favourite tequila cocktail of all time.

This is perhaps my favourite Tequila cocktail of all time. I was going to name it “Swing Time” but then my brilliant girlfriend suggested “Fred & Ginger”. Just like the greatest American dancing-duo, this cocktail is smooth, exciting and timeless. 

Fred & Ginger

  • 2 oz Espolón Reposado Tequila
  • 3/4 oz Domaine de Canton
  • 3/4 oz Honey Syrup
  • 3/4 oz Lemon Juice
  • Two dashes of Regans’ Orange Bitters
  • Cucumber Wheel

Whilst watching Swing Time add ingredients to tin over cracked ice. Shake & strain into chilled coupe. Cucumber wheel garnish.