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There: I said it, loud and clear. I hate Margarita mix! Now, I love a good, cold Margarita, straight up, salt the rim, please. It’s one of my favorite cocktails, and one that becomes even more popular when the weather turns hot. It’s potent without being overpowering, refreshing, and has a delicious balance of sweet and sour that keeps you coming back for just one more sip. But, make a Margarita with one of the mixes and you end up with something other than a Margarita. Take a minute to read the list of ingredients on the Margarita mix package and ask yourself if you really want to put that chemical swamp into your body.

Like all classic cocktails that have lasted over the years, a good Margarita is fairly easy to make. Here’s my favorite recipe, from my friend Dale Degroff. Dale is known as “The King of Cocktails” and is the author of: “The Craft of the Cocktail”, the finest book that I know of on the Barman’s art. It should be on every bartender’s bookshelf, amateur and professional alike.

The Original Margarita
1 1/2 oz. 100% blue agave plata Tequila
3/4 oz. freshly squeezed lime juice
1-1/4 oz. Cointreau

Shake together all ingredients with fresh ice cubes in a cocktail shaker until well chilled, about a count of ten. Take one of the lime rinds and run it around the outside edge of a cocktail glass (Be careful to avoid the inside of the glass, or you’ll have salt in your drink.) Dip the edge of the glass into Kosher salt (iodized table salt just won’t work) so that half of the outside edge of the glass is coated. Strain the drink into the glass.

Simple? Yes. Delicious? Absolutely! There’s one very important rule to follow: use good ingredients, starting with the Tequila. During the days of Prohibition bartenders had to be wizards, since the liquor that they had to work with was usually pretty bad. The law kept most of the “real” booze from getting into the country and locally made was all there was. Making a good tasting drink from this was an art, and many of the cocktails that we still drink today came out of those bad old days. Since we have a wide selection of liquors available to us at reasonable costs, start with good alcohol. True Tequila is made from 100% blue agave. Most of the commercial brands use the bare minimum of 51% agave required by Mexican law, with the remaining 49% nothing more than cheap grain spirits. Most of the cheap Tequila made in the US is really nothing more than artificially flavored Vodka, with no agave at all used in making it.

My Tequilas of choice for a Margarita are Centenario Plata, Herradura Silver and Patron Silver, Plata, or Silver, is unaged Tequila. It is clear in color or may have a faint greenish cast. Añejo is slightly aged, traditionally in redwood barrels, but more recently in oak. The law requires a minimum of only six months of aging, but better houses hold their Añejos longer. These will have a light smoky taste, still good for a mixed drink. The oldest, darkest and most flavorful Tequila is labeled Reposado, and is aged the longest. I don’t use Reposado for mixing, preferring to enjoy it the way I would a fine brandy, sipped slowly after a meal, no lime or salt, thank you.

Why Cointreau? Cointreau belongs to the group of fruit brandy-based liqueurs called Triple Sec, which means “triple dry”. In reality triple sec is sweet and has a tart, slightly peppery orange peel flavor which should come only from Curaçao (ku ra SAH oh) oranges. Cointreau is the finest triple sec available, and one of the only brands to use Curaçao oranges instead of artificial flavoring agents. If you’ll take the time to taste it alongside other triple secs, you’ll understand why I use nothing else. It will only cost a few pennies more per drink for the real thing, and your drinks will taste much better for it.

Nothing beats fresh fruit juice for making drinks. Bottled juices can’t compare. Be your own judge: taste a bottled lime juice (or a mix) next to the real thing and make up your own mind. Limes have become very affordable over the past few years, so buying a bagful for a party won’t set you back more than a few dollars. Pressing down firmly on the side of each lime, roll it back and forth on a counter or table top. This will help to break up the cells inside the fruit and will yield more juice... and use a juicer to squeeze the juice out, not just your hand. A simple wooden citrus reamer can be picked up at a housewares shop.

I think that you’ll agree, a well-made Margarita is a delicious drink, and it’s really simple to make an authentic one: no mix required!

©2007 The Brooklyn Paper