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For Tequila Lovers

#121
Lobster11 said:
Add too much other stuff and you overwhelm the taste of the tequila rather than complementing it.
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That's my conclusion as well.

Not a fan of other liquors or flavorings (such as cointreu) aside from lime and agave in my margs. Just the tequila.

The nice thing about agave syrup is it's easier to control the amount of sweetness with it. It's more mild than sugar. I'm also not a fan of too-sweet margaritas; either a nice balance of sweet and sour or, if anything, lean a bit more toward the lime.

Damn, all this talk has been making me thirsty for a good margarita, but I'm trying not to drink during the week. Must divert my attention away from this thread...
 
#123
electracoyote said:
On the rocks, no salt.
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Since I ascribe to the theory that the less you add to the tequila the better, I have to respect the no-salt argument. However, I personally do think that a little salt -- via a lightly-salted glass rim -- somehow provides an otherwise-missing ingredient that brings all of the the flavors of a good margarita together. You get sour from the lime, sweet from the agave nectar, and bitter from the alcohol, so the only thing missing is salt to create the perfect balance of flavor components.

That's why, IMHO, a good margarita is served in a (lightly salted) wide-rimmed glass: You want to be able to work your way around the glass as you drink it to ensure some salt in every sip, and you shouldn't run out of rim/salt before you run out of margarita. I'm always puzzled when I get served a margarita in a beer pint glass or something similar that doesn't give you enough salted rim relative to the amount of beverage.

Don't even get me started on the topic of why anyone would give me a freakin' straw with a margarita that I explicitly ordered "with salt"....
 
#125
I tried a Don Julio blanco last night. I ordered just a shot, at room temperature, no ice. Excellent tequila to my taste buds. I find that taking a sip of cold water every so often between sips of tequila really enhances the flavor profile for me.

Next up, I'll be trying an anejo. There is a Mexican joint about 45 minutes from our house that boasts a "tequila menu", with over 50 different tequilas. That should be a fun evening as soon as we get it planned.

-Mike
 
#128
I picked up a bottle of Hornitos Plata. It said nuestro tequila on the label. After pouring a shot and consuming it at room temperature, I must say I quite enjoyed it. It had a little bit of a bite to it, like pepper almost.

I was intrigued by the plata and nuestro. I don't remember seeing those in the other kinds I was looking for. Since it was totally clear, I am assuming it falls in with the blancos?

-Mike
 
#130
MJ5150 said:
I picked up a bottle of Hornitos Plata. It said nuestro tequila on the label. After pouring a shot and consuming it at room temperature, I must say I quite enjoyed it. It had a little bit of a bite to it, like pepper almost.

I was intrigued by the plata and nuestro. I don't remember seeing those in the other kinds I was looking for. Since it was totally clear, I am assuming it falls in with the blancos?

-Mike
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Nuestro means 'ours' in english, 'plata' is silver.

I have enjoyed very many tequilas over the years and acquired my own 'refined' taste for it. A favorite vacation spot has been the scene of at least 8 separate 'tasting panels' which featured as few as 6 and as many as 11 different brands, ranging from the everyday awful (IMO) to the sublime (also IMO). All the 'judging' was done by me and my 'peers'. I will also say that taste is a VERY subjective quality, and would respectfully request those that are so kindly giving us the benefit of their experience and expertise to qualify their blanket statements with an IMO or IME, please. While I disagree with many of those who have posted, (and wholeheartedly agree with many others) I would defend everyones' right to their own opinion, including mine.

That said, I happen to prefer the silver tequilas in general over the reposados and anejos. However, at the moment my favorite is El Tesoro Paradiso Anejo Invalid Link Removed. It is not cheap, but for sipping/enjoying it is superb. The best? I cannot answer, as I have not sampled all there is to offer, so even IMO, I wouldn't be able to answer accurately.

If I could I would very much enjoy having a tasting comparison with all the TB collective, no matter how long it takes.
 
#132
I read through this thread, very interesting. When I drink tequila I always bought the Cuervo Especial. So tonight I bought Hornitas Plata & did a blind taste test on ice since it’s how I drink it most of the time. My wife handed me the Hornitas first, I thought it was the Cuervo, expecting the blanco to have less flavor, smoother, whatever. I preferred the Hornitas. Thanks for starting this thread.
 
#133
Jim Kernan said:
I read through this thread, very interesting. When I drink tequila I always bought the Cuervo Especial. So tonight I bought Hornitas Plata & did a blind taste test on ice since it’s how I drink it most of the time. My wife handed me the Hornitas first, I thought it was the Cuervo, expecting the blanco to have less flavor, smoother, whatever. I preferred the Hornitas. Thanks for starting this thread.
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You are quite welcome! I was thrilled to see the positive response to the thread when I first started it, and I'm equally happy to see it now resurrected after a brief hiatus.

And I've gotta say, nothing warms my heart more than hearing from folks like you who appreciate learning how much the Mighty Agave has to offer, beyond those crummy mixtos like Cuervo Especial that (literally) left a bad taste in their mouths!
 
#134
MJ5150 said:
Hitting the Plata again tonight. I think I found a favorite. I recommend it sipped at room temperature, no water added.

-Mike
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Hey Mike,

That's great to find something you really like, especially at that price point!

If you like the Hornitos Plata, here are a couple of other low-cost recommendations: First, if you want to go even cheaper, you might want to try the Camarena silver (which I happen to be sipping at the moment myself). Or, going in the opposite direction, for just a few bucks more, try the Corazon blanco, which is my personal favorite bang-for-the-buck blanco (at least when it's on sale for a few bucks off).
 
#136
Lobster11 said:
If you like the Hornitos Plata, here are a couple of other low-cost recommendations: First, if you want to go even cheaper, you might want to try the Camarena silver (which I happen to be sipping at the moment myself). Or, going in the opposite direction, for just a few bucks more, try the Corazon blanco, which is my personal favorite bang-for-the-buck blanco (at least when it's on sale for a few bucks off).
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Thank you for the suggestions. Once I work through this bottle, I'll give Camarena silver a try.

-Mike
 
#138
If I'm drinking for taste, Patron (I like all varieties well enough, depending on what I want at the time). For drinking for...well, drinking, just doing shots, Camarena reposado. It's the cheapest 100% Agave tequila I've found in my local stores, and it's pretty alright. I don't usually have it at room temperature (usually from the fridge), but even at room temperature it's far better than say, Jose Cuervo's.
 
#139
D.M.N. said:
If I'm drinking for taste, Patron (I like all varieties well enough, depending on what I want at the time). For drinking for...well, drinking, just doing shots, Camarena reposado. It's the cheapest 100% Agave tequila I've found in my local stores, and it's pretty alright. I don't usually have it at room temperature (usually from the fridge), but even at room temperature it's far better than say, Jose Cuervo's.
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My favorite, if I'm going for a cheap Tequila, is Tequila Cazadores Reposado.
 

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