Best Tequila for Margarita Cocktail?

[rsbeck]

Okay, so I read a bunch of reviews, sifted through my ideas about oak aging and then went out and bought a bottle of Casa Noble Reposado. On Tequila sites, yes there are tequila sites, this Reposado is highly rated by both critics and drinkers. I chose Casa Noble Reposado because they do a curious thing; they age their Reposado for 364 days. One more day and it would be considered an Anejo. But, their Anejo, along with all of the other highly rated Anejos are aged in wood for two or more years. I figured this would put me in the oak aging sweet spot.

Reading around, the advice is that if you are using your tequila to make margaritas, unless you use high quality ingredients, you will not get the benefit.

But, if you do use high quality ingredients, they say you will get the benefit.

So, I used the Casa Noble Reposado to make margaritas. Or, technically, a margarita cocktail.

My ingredients were, Casa Noble Reposado, Grand Marnier, Agave Nectar, and fresh squeezed lime juice.

Oh my lord, this made the best tasting margarita cocktail I've ever had! My wife and our guests were also bowled over.

It was delicious, but I've had a lot of good tasting Margaritas. What made this superior, IMO, is that it was also more sophisticated, complex & interesting than any margarita I've ever had before.

So, this is not scientific. I did not buy a bunch of tequilas, sip each one in a taste off and rate them. I relied on a couple of tequila sites to do the ground work for me.

But, in a margarita with high quality ingredients, it tasted better than anything I've tasted before.

Of course, this may also be due to the fresh squeezed lime and agave' nectar. Most recipes suggest using a sweetener made of sugar melted in water called "simple syrup."

I used agave nectar because Tequila is also made from agave and I figured the flavors would intensify and compliment each other and that this would be better than a simple sugar sweetener. Agave nectar is interesting. On one hand, it is sweeter than sugar, so you can use less of it to get similar results and it also has a lower glycemic index, so it may be a healthier choice. Personally, I like the flavor and I use it instead of sugar or honey, which I find too sickly sweet. IMO, agave nectar mellower and rounder.

So, I don't know if Casa Noble Reposado is the best tequila, but I do know that I have found one killer margarita recipe and it includes Casa Noble Reposado.

So, I will be buying more Casa Noble.

And more Agave Nectar.

Highly recommended.

[Ron Party]

Rob, a few questions. How many oz. of each ingredient did you use? Which Agave Nectar did you use? Blended or straight?

[rblnr]

Okay, so I read a bunch of reviews, sifted through my ideas about oak aging and then went out and bought a bottle of Casa Noble Reposado. On Tequila sites, yes there are tequila sites, this Reposado is highly rated by both critics and drinkers. I chose Casa Noble Reposado because they do a curious thing; they age their Reposado for 364 days. One more day and it would be considered an Anejo. But, their Anejo, along with all of the other highly rated Anejos are aged in wood for two or more years. I figured this would put me in the oak aging sweet spot.

Reading around, the advice is that if you are using your tequila to make margaritas, unless you use high quality ingredients, you will not get the benefit.

But, if you do use high quality ingredients, they say you will get the benefit.

So, I used the Casa Noble Reposado to make margaritas. Or, technically, a margarita cocktail.

My ingredients were, Casa Noble Reposado, Grand Marnier, Agave Nectar, and fresh squeezed lime juice.

Oh my lord, this made the best tasting margarita cocktail I've ever had! My wife and our guests were also bowled over.

It was delicious, but I've had a lot of good tasting Margaritas. What made this superior, IMO, is that it was also more sophisticated, complex & interesting than any margarita I've ever had before.

So, this is not scientific. I did not buy a bunch of tequilas, sip each one in a taste off and rate them. I relied on a couple of tequila sites to do the ground work for me.

But, in a margarita with high quality ingredients, it tasted better than anything I've tasted before.

Of course, this may also be due to the fresh squeezed lime and agave' nectar. Most recipes suggest using a sweetener made of sugar melted in water called "simple syrup."

I used agave nectar because Tequila is also made from agave and I figured the flavors would intensify and compliment each other and that this would be better than a simple sugar sweetener. Agave nectar is interesting. On one hand, it is sweeter than sugar, so you can use less of it to get similar results and it also has a lower glycemic index, so it may be a healthier choice. Personally, I like the flavor and I use it instead of sugar or honey, which I find too sickly sweet. IMO, agave nectar mellower and rounder.

So, I don't know if Casa Noble Reposado is the best tequila, but I do know that I have found one killer margarita recipe and it includes Casa Noble Reposado.

So, I will be buying more Casa Noble.

And more Agave Nectar.

Highly recommended.

I've been making margaritas like this for years, and most think them to be far and away the best they've ever had. A few things:

- I think you can sub other good 100% agave tequilas for Casa Noble. My 'go to' for larger quantities is Sauza Hornitos. Not as good as CN, but works perfectly well.
- Try Patron Citronage instead of Grand Marnier -- it's a cleaner tasting orange hit
- I like agave syrup, maple syrup is also worth a try for something different. Kinda mellower.
- some fruit extracts can add variety -- guava is particularly good

Here's what I do -- don't really measure after years of bartending in NYC:

In a 28oz shaker, squeeze 6 - 7 limes. Add 6 - 7 ice cubes. Pour tequila slowly over exposed ice until shaker is about 1/2 - 2/3 full. Add maybe an inch of orange liquor (this is less than usually called for, but that's my taste), add sweetener to taste. (Pouring simple/agave/maple syrup in for about 1 - 1.5 secs is a place to start). Shake and pour over ice. If not pouring over ice, add some add'l ice to shaker, then pour.

[rsbeck]

Thanks for the tips!

Being a Margarita Making Newbie, I started by measuring everything. This is where I ended up:

I poured

8 oz. of Casa Noble Tequila

4 oz. of Grand Marnier

2 oz of Agave Nectar.

And Squeezed

4 full limes (16 halves)

Into a shaker with a scoop of ice along with the squeezed limes. Mash it a little to get some bitter from the peels.

Shake.

Placed a squeezed out half lime at the bottom of four 10 oz freezer chilled rocks glasses filled with ice.

Fill each glass with Margarita.


Experts, including rblnr above, seem to agree that although they do not prefer Patron Tequila, they do say Patron makes a good Citronage. Rblnr's recommendation is the tipping point for me, so I am going to definitely give that a try.

I purchased the agave nectar from Costco. They have the best price and excellent tasting nectar.

It's Organic Blue Agave 100% agave nectar made by Wholesome Sweeteners Sugar Land, TX.

[rsbeck]

I will definitely repeat this recipe next time, although at some point I will tinker by substituting Patron Citronage for the Grand Marnier. Hopefully, at some point, I will be able to make it without a measuring device.

[rsbeck]

Used this recipe again today for a party, still using liquid measuring cup. Tinkered around with some of the ingredients, starting with less Grand Marnier and Agave, but when tasting, I ended up adding more and it seems to come out best with the same proportions I used last time. Lots of compliments on the margaritas!

[Ron Party]

I tried a modified version of the recipe Saturday evening. I sort of combined Rob's and rblnr's recipes, then somewhat halved everything.

9 oz. of 4 Copas Reposado.
4 oz. of Patron Citronage.
3 oz. of Agave Nectar.
2 limes, squeezed.

Poured everything into a pitcher with ice, swirled and swirled, then poured into glasses with fresh ice and lime wedges. Delicious. Potent. Wonderful. Highly recommended. Thanks for the recipes, guys.

[rsbeck]

This is fun. I'm curious to try Citronage.

[audioguy]

I tried a modified version of the recipe Saturday evening. I sort of combined Rob's and rblnr's recipes, then somewhat halved everything.

9 oz. of 4 Copas Reposado.
4 oz. of Patron Citronage.
3 oz. of Agave Nectar.
2 limes, squeezed.

Poured everything into a pitcher with ice, swirled and swirled, then poured into glasses with fresh ice and lime wedges. Delicious. Potent. Wonderful. Highly recommended. Thanks for the recipes, guys.

At last quantities I can sample without ending up knee-walking drunk!

[Ron Party]

Chuck, bear in mind that even my recipe produced enough for about 5 glasses of margaritas. Also bear in mind that Patron Citronage, while it is an orange liqueur, is 80 proof. Do the math, and each glass has almost 3 oz. of alcohol. Have 2 glasses and, well ... let's just say that at about 11:30 that evening my wife went upstairs to go to bed while my friend and I were turning up the volume on some fine progressive rock.