• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• 1 tsp Port
• 2 dashes Apothecary ‘Mason Dixon’ Southern Pecan bitters
• Orange twist, for garnish
Curandero
All Black Everything
• 2 oz Hornitos Black Barrel Reposado Anejo Tequila
• 0.25 oz Squid Ink Simple Syrup
• 2 Dashes J.T. Own Decanter Bitters
• 5 Drops Saline
Big-Batch Margarita
Toss one of these bottled Margaritas to your guests the next time you have a party or barbecue. Minds blown!
3 cups reposado tequila
1.5 cups Cointreau
1.5 cups freshly squeezed lime juice
2 cups water
2 pinches sea salt
Combine all ingredients in a large pitcher. Stir, pour into bottles, seal, label and refrigerate or stash on ice.
Tequila and Cider Collins
INGREDIENTS:
1 oz blanco tequila
0.5 oz Galliano vanilla liqueur
3 dashes Angostura bitters
4 oz dry hard cider
Apple slices for garnish
METHOD:
Fill a Collins glass with ice, then add all ingredients in order (except garnish) and stir. Top with more ice and a splash of cider, and garnish with fresh apple slices.
Old Fashioned refashioned at Wildebeest
Cocktail-forward restaurant serving nine new takes on the classic for its fifth birthday
The Old Fashioned is, arguably, the original cocktail, or at least, the whisky version of it.
Mexican Firing Squad
Take aim at some great grenadine flavours
INGREDIENTS:
2 oz blanco tequila (or mezcal)
¾ oz grenadine*
¾ oz fresh lime juice
3 dashes Angostura bitters
1 dash lime bitters
Splash of soda
Lime wheel, for garnish
METHOD:
Shake all the ingredients except soda with ice. Strain over fresh ice in a Collins glass. Top with soda and garnish with a lime wheel. Serves 1.
*La Mezcaleria’s grenadine: Place 1 cup pomegranate juice (fresh is best, but bottled 100-per-cent pomegranate juice will also work) in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat for approximately 5 minutes. To preserve the bright, fresh flavour, do not boil or reduce the juice. Remove from the heat and add 1 cup sugar and a couple of dashes of orange flower water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. This will keep, refrigerated, in a clean glass jar for up to a week.
—by Ryley Zucca
Read more about the inspiration behind this cocktail.
Searching for Margaritaville
Mastering this quintessential summer cocktail can be as difficult as tracking down its origins
It’s the taste of a perfect summer afternoon: that citrus bite, the peppery hit of tequila, the touch of salt like the spray of a random ocean wave.
We’re talking about the Margarita, of course; the quintessential summer cocktail that holds a mysterious past. When it comes to this particular dame’s history, no one really knows what the truth is.
Coa Swizzle
The coa is a specialized hoe used to harvest agave. Here it’s also the inspiration for Luke McInnes’ tequila-based variation on a Caribbean-style swizzle, now on the menu at Blue Water Café.
• 1 oz (30 mL) blanco tequila
• 1 oz (30 mL) watermelon-infused Lillet Blanc (see note)
• 0.25 oz (7 mL) Campari
• 0.25 oz (7 mL) agave syrup
• 1 oz (30 mL) lime juice
• 3 dashes black peppercorn tincture (see note)
Stir—or swizzle—all the ingredients together in a highball glass, then fill the glass with crushed ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint. Serves 1.
I Sat By The Ocean
“I decided to embrace the salty, briny taste of this Manzanilla sherry and create a pickle juice Martini on steroids. The salt and pepper rim complements the sherry’s terroir near the ocean, and the peppery punch of the tequila, while the celery bitters and oils from the lemon peel keep it light and crisp.”
How to stock your spirits cabinet
Every cocktail starts with a base spirit. Every home cocktail bar should do the same. The question is, what spirits do you really need to stock at home? What’s worth spending money on (and what isn’t)? After all, those bright, shiny bottles can be expensive.