Tequila is the most underrated spirit in the home bar. Here is what to make with it.
Tequila is the gin of warm climates. It is sharper, herbier, and far more versatile than its reputation as a shot spirit suggests. Buy a 100% agave blanco for shaking and a reposado for stirring. Skip the gold.
Mezcal is tequila’s smoky cousin. Where a recipe calls for tequila, mezcal will work, but the smoke takes over. Use it where you want it to be the star, not the sidekick.
The recipes
Cocktail
Classic Margarita
The margarita is the cocktail most Australian home cooks already know they can make, and the one most of them make slightly wrong. It is also the cocktail…
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Cocktail
Tommy’s Margarita
Invented in the early 1990s at Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant in San Francisco, the Tommy’s Margarita ditches the triple sec and lets the tequila do the talking. Why you…
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Cocktail
Spicy Margarita
Heat through the lime. Why you are pouring this tonight Heat through the lime. A muddled slice of jalapeño, a tajin-and-chilli rim, an extra squeeze of lime. The…
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Cocktail
Mezcal Margarita
Swap half the tequila for mezcal and the Margarita shifts into a different drink: smoky, earthy, deeper. Why you are pouring this tonight Swap half the tequila for…
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Cocktail
Coconut Margarita
Coconut Margarita lives at the intersection of Margarita and Pina Colada. Why you are pouring this tonight Coconut Margarita lives at the intersection of Margarita and Pina Colada.…
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Cocktail
Paloma
Australia adopted the Margarita. Mexico drinks the Paloma. The Margarita gets the press. The Paloma gets drunk on a Tuesday. One of these is telling us something.
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Cocktail
Mezcal Paloma
Swap tequila for mezcal and the Paloma picks up a layer of smoke that makes it feel like a late-afternoon drink even at lunch. Why you are pouring…
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Cocktail
Chilli Paloma
A slice of fresh red chilli pressed against the ice, a tajin rim. Why you are pouring this tonight A slice of fresh red chilli pressed against the…
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Cocktail
Pink Paloma
Fresh watermelon juice or muddled raspberries push the Paloma into summer-party territory: pinker, slightly sweeter, very easy to drink too much of. Why you are pouring this tonight…
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Cocktail
The Mexican Mule
Swap vodka for tequila and the Moscow Mule picks up agave warmth and a lime brightness. Why you are pouring this tonight Swap vodka for tequila and the…
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Cocktail
The Mezcal Mule
The smokiest Mule of the bunch. Why you are pouring this tonight The smokiest Mule of the bunch. Mezcal in place of vodka turns the drink into a…
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Cocktail
Tequila Sunrise
Tequila, orange juice, real grenadine sunk to the bottom. Why you are pouring this tonight Tequila, orange juice, real grenadine sunk to the bottom. Drink before noon, photograph…
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Cocktail
Ranch Water
Texas's gift to summer. Why you are pouring this tonight Texas's gift to summer. Tequila, lime, Topo Chico (or other mineral water). Three ingredients, no apologies. What to…
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Cocktail
El Diablo
El Diablo is the older, sneakier cousin of the Mexican Mule. Why you are pouring this tonight El Diablo is the older, sneakier cousin of the Mexican Mule.…
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Cocktail
Matador
The Matador is a tequila Daiquiri with pineapple. Why you are pouring this tonight The Matador is a tequila Daiquiri with pineapple. Fresh, sharp, and one of the…
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Cocktail
Rosita
Why you are pouring this tonight The tequila Negroni. Reposado tequila in place of gin. Earthier, smokier, just as bitter. What to pour it alongside Aged hard cheese,…
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Cocktail
Cantarito
A Mexican tequila highball traditionally served in a clay (cantaro) cup. Why you are pouring this tonight A Mexican tequila highball traditionally served in a clay (cantaro) cup.…
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Cocktail
Michelada
The Michelada is a Mexican beer cocktail. Why you are pouring this tonight The Michelada is a Mexican beer cocktail. Lime, salt, hot sauce, and a cheap pale…
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Cocktail
Tequila Old Fashioned
Reposado tequila in the Old Fashioned template. Why you are pouring this tonight Reposado tequila in the Old Fashioned template. Smokier and earthier than bourbon, the agave gives…
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Cocktail
Tequila Negroni
Confusingly identical to the Rosita without the dry vermouth. Why you are pouring this tonight Confusingly identical to the Rosita without the dry vermouth. A pure equal-parts tequila-Campari-sweet-vermouth…
Read the recipe →The simplest tequila cocktail is also the best: tequila over ice with a wedge of lime and a pinch of flaky salt. If that tastes harsh, your tequila is the problem. Spend a little more.