In some methods, the story of the trendy Margarita is the story of tequila. In 2018, after we final blind-tasted the drink, we had been happy to seek out that the Margarita had lengthy since moved on from the mixto tequila that had plagued it within the previous many years in favor of variations made with 100% agave. At our latest tasting, not solely was each tequila comprised of 100% agave, eight out of 11 had been additive-free. The extra the business embraces the easiest tequila, the extra the Margarita improves. At the moment, the Margarita has by no means been higher.
When the Punch editorial workforce convened on a latest Wednesday at Manhattan’s Superbueno with proprietor Ignacio “Nacho” Jimenez and Milady’s head bartender, Izzy Tulloch, we had been searching for the perfect mixture of “booze, citrus and salt,” in line with Jimenez. “It’s all about the way you steadiness these three.” For the primary factor, we had been on the lookout for a tequila with that quintessential peppery chew and inexperienced, vegetal tones. As for the lime, “it’s gotta have some zip,” in line with Tulloch, which means it needed to be contemporary and there needed to be sufficient of it to be borderline mouth-puckering. For the salt, and whether or not or not it belongs on the rim of the glass, all agreed with Punch editor-in-chief Talia Baiocchi: “You gotta have it.”
Although the non-public preferences of the judges every aligned with the extra austere construct of a Tommy’s Margarita, i.e., a Margarita that will get its sweetness from agave nectar within the absence of orange liqueur, solely two of the 11 submitted recipes adhered to that mannequin, and neither took the highest spot. As a substitute, two of our three favorites took a hybrid strategy—every known as on orange liqueur, albeit in a amount lower than that of the lime, a notable departure from the standard even break up between these components.
The unanimous winner was Christine Wiseman’s Margarita, which builds on two ounces of Cascahuín blanco tequila, an oz. of lime juice, half an oz. of Cointreau and half an oz. of agave syrup (in a 1:1 ratio of agave nectar to water) served in a glass with a half salt rim and a lime wheel garnish. “It’s obtained zip,” confirmed Tulloch, however it additionally had the suitable quantity of physique with out being too candy. And though it contained orange liqueur, which may typically lend an disagreeable confectionary word to the drink, it was the tequila that shone via. “The tequila is so lovely,” stated Jimenez. “[This one] actually stands out from the remaining.”
Second place went to Natasha Bermudez, whose Margarita requires Tapatío blanco tequila, three-quarters of an oz. of lime juice, and a half-ounce every of Cointreau and lightweight agave syrup. The judges discovered the tequila was current and “caught round,” in Tulloch’s phrases, sporting a traditional peppery high quality that we had been all on the lookout for, backed by the archetypal citrusy, salty notes of a traditional Marg. The judges’ solely qualm was with the Tajín rim, which counterintuitively made the drink style sweeter—nearly too candy. Sal de gusano, an alternate garnish advisable by Bermudez, may’ve been most popular.
Third place went to Yana Volfson’s Margarita, which makes use of Tapatío 110 as the bottom, paired with an oz. of lime juice and a half-ounce every of Giffard and Combier triple sec. It drank on the leaner aspect (it was the one one in our high three with out agave syrup), which was most popular by a number of judges, and had “actually good taste,” stated Tulloch.
On the entire, the entrants painted an image of a traditional cocktail reaching its best potential. An appreciation of high-quality, unadulterated tequila paired with a extra lime-forward building has constructed up the drink right into a fail-safe order. Now, in line with Tulloch, the Margarita “is like pizza: Even when it’s unhealthy, it’s nonetheless drink.”
