Ever Had A Real Margarita?
I went to Israeli Socialist Summer Camp in upstate New York. A few things were different. I didn’t know that the other kids weren’t reenacting the Russian Revolution, or pooling all their money and candy in disdain of capitalism, but my camp experience was pretty great, so I can’t complain. Besides, Jewish mom’s are pretty generous with their candy so pooling it for the sake of variety worked out well.
The only problem was, even in the middle of summer, it rarely got hot enough that you’d actually look forward to going to the pool, most of the time, it wasn’t worth it. One day, while killing time, we discovered wild raspberry bushes behind one of the bunks. We were hungry. What the hell.
Picking raspberries is hard work. Wild raspberries are tiny, frequently near poison ivy, and surrounded by thorns. The thing that makes it epic is shoving an hour of work, a whole handful under the sink and into your mouth all at once and soaking it in as light red excess water dribbles down your cheek in the summer sun.
I’d only tasted fake raspberries before: raspberry syrup, raspberry lolipops, raspberry powdered lemonade.
I was unprepared for the real thing.
That’s what a real margarita was like for me.
In order for a spirit to be called Tequila, it must have the extract of the Agave Plant
My first Margarita was at Mad Mex, a college bar with a giant 40 foot bar and enormous quantities of tequila and sweet slushy mix churning in the back. I had one Margarita and was amazed to find out I’d ingested six shots of alcohol.
Real margaritas are different. They pare the Margarita down to it’s essentials. There’s nothing artificial, or syrupy about them. The best thing about them is how easy they are to make. Agave nectar used to be sold only in health food stores, but because of it’s health benefits and lower glycemic index it’s available in almost every supermarket. It smooths out even sharp tequila. I strongly suggest you squeeze your own limes. I never take fresh juice for granted, it’s always welcome and it makes the drink. Because the drink is so simple, using an exceptional tequila like Milagro is fine because the flavor is able to express itself in the drink.
You only need:
If you want a salt rim, make sure you rim the glass by pouring salt into a plate, wetting the glass with a fresh lime wedge, and dipping it over the salt.
Use about one part tequila per two parts lime juice, and don’t go crazy with the Agave Nectar, it’s sweeter than sugar and you won’t need as much as you think. Try and match the tequila with the nectar (you can buy agave nectar in light or dark, just like tequilas come in Blanco, Anejo, and Reposado).
This article was written by Ori, the director of The Mixology Wine Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. You can check out their website at www.bartendingschoolphiladelphia and their blog at http://www.mixologywine.tumblr.com
