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Tequila!

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    • Happy Cinco de Mayo! Does anyone even know what that commemorates?... I think it’s just an excuse to party. :)

      Anyway, the local liquor store was doing tequila tastings. I know nothing about tequila and initially declined since I was sipping a coffee, but then decided to try some. It was pretty good.

      I tasted two Mi Campo types, a blanco and a reposado. I think the difference between the two is the reposado is aged longer. It was my favorite so a bottle found it’s way into my cart.
      Lost in the right direction.
    • Traffic Jam wrote:

      Happy Cinco de Mayo! Does anyone even know what that commemorates?... I think it’s just an excuse to party. :)
      Originally to celebrate a Mexican victory over France. In Mexico they celebrate their independence in September. Cinco de May is celebrated more in the USA, and essentially like you say just an excuse to celebrate Mexican-American culture. Not one for tequila, but after working in Texas for over 20 years, I sure do appreciate some good TexMex. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • I was going to have a marguerita but since I was driving and am pretty much a lightweight, decided to pass.

      We went to my favorite restaurant, El Barzon, for dinner. Very festive atmosphere.
      I had steak enchiladas with mole poblano sauce and my husband has cabrito (goat). Both dinners were accompanied by rice and black beans. So delicious!
      And there was a band that played; diners enjoyed themselves by getting up to dance.
    • We went to one of he better (meaning more authentic rather than fancy) Mexican restaurants last night after seeing Avengers Endgame (who wants to cook after a thee hour movie?). I had the combo plate with a cheese chili rellano, steak enchilada, and steak taco (with beans and rice). And of course a Margarita. Yum

      Also this year I have been learning to make cocktails at home so a few weeks ago I got the ingredients for making margaritas from scratch. I must say, a homemade margarita is way better than the chemical-tasting ones made from mixes you get a a lot of restaurants. When researching recipes, I find the simple ones are better than the complex ones with lots of ingredients. It seems that the most authoritative recipes use three ingredients, lime juice, some sort of orange liquor, and tequila. Getting the ratios to suit your taste is the trick. For Margarita recipes, the key seems to be to have the volume of lime+orange equal the volume of tequila. Then you can adjust the lime/orange ratio to suit your taste (more lime=more tart). For Orange, some recipes use Cointreau, some use Gran Marnier, and some use other brands of Triple Sec. Also some will replace some of the triple sec with syrup (agave or sugar). Here is what I settled on

      1/2 oz lime juice (always fresh squeezed)
      1 oz triple sec (I am using Grand Gala)
      1.5 oz tequila (I am using using Espalon Blanco)
      put in cocktail shaker with Ice and shake for 30ish seconds.
      strain into glass with fresh ice (salt the rim if you want)

      When shopping for liquor, I use the following strategy. The bottom shelf is crap. Drinks are always better when not using crap. The top shelf is good, but overpriced as you are paying for a lot of marketing. Marketing doesn't make it better. Find bottles that are priced midway between the top and bottom and Google these to see what others recommend. The general consensus is that this will get you liquor that is a good value - as good or better than the top well known top shelf brands but at a fair price as you are paying for the liquor and not the marketing.
    • Trillium wrote:

      Then we went to my other favorite restaurant, M Cantina, for dessert.

      Here's Heidi, the owner's wife, making my Cinco Leches Cake:

      Mmmmmmm. Cinco Leches Cake (note: forgot to take a closeup pic when she first served it so this is about 1/2 LOL)
      Cinco Leches! I've only ever had Tres Leches. Looks delicious.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • I stay away from Tequila. On my 40th birthday I went to a surprise party for myself and two other friends who had birthdays the same week and drank tequila, then a bunch of mescal and ate the worm. Stayed out all night and was hungover for days. I was told it was a great party and I had a hell of a good time.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference
    • “The day gained nationwide popularity in the 1980s thanks especially to advertising campaigns by beer and wine companies. Today, Cinco de Mayo generates beer sales on par with the Super Bowl.“

      I can get behind beer holidays. Especially if I can sleep late the next day.
      Lost in the right direction.