Paloma
50 ml Tequila blanco, 60 ml Grapefruit juice, 15 ml Lime juice, 10 ml Simple syrup, 60 ml Soda water, 1 pinch Salt
Photo: MargaritaReal by Akke Monasso · CC BY-SA 3.0 · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 300 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 300 ml line. Tequila blanco - Blanco
- 120 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 120 ml line. Triple sec
- 150 ml Jigger Three large sides (3 x 50 ml) of a standard jigger. Lime juice
- 6 pinches Salt - For the rim (optional)
- 6 wedges Lime wedge (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Shake tequila, triple sec and lime with ice.
- Strain over ice into a half-salted glass.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 570 ml of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Rub a lime wedge around half the rim of a rocks glass and dip it in salt.
- Shake the tequila, triple sec and lime juice with ice until very cold.
- Strain over fresh ice in the prepared glass.
- Garnish with the spent lime wedge.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Margarita
Nobody agrees on who made the first one, which is the surest sign of a drink that has been around long enough to belong to everybody. It is as old as the daisy family it comes from, and precisely as good as the tequila you put in it: a blanco brings brightness, a reposado makes something rounder and a little woody.
Getting it right
Salt half the rim and leave the other half bare, so people can choose. Squeeze the limes yourself, and if the drink tastes flat, believe the limes before you believe anything else - a tired lime has ruined more Margaritas than bad tequila ever has. Shake it with plenty of ice, strain it over fresh ice in a rocks glass, and keep the glass cold. The orange liqueur is there to round the edges; if the drink starts tasting of oranges, you have been generous.
Tasting notes
Sharp, clean agave with orange underneath and a saline kick that makes it dangerously easy to drink. The best possible argument for a bowl of salted crisps.
More Tequila blanco cocktails
Tequila Sunrise
45 ml Tequila blanco, 90 ml Orange juice, 15 ml Grenadine, 1 Orange slice, 1 Maraschino cherry
Tommy's Margarita
60 ml Tequila blanco, 30 ml Lime juice, 15 ml Agave syrup, 1 pinch Salt, 1 wheel Lime