HOW
TO MAKE A PERFECT MARGARITA
Recipes from the King of Cocktails
by Jeff Hoyt
|
Dale
DeGroff enjoys one of his creations |
Cointreau
or no Cointreau? That is the question hotly debated
by margarita connoisseurs. To get a definitive answer,
we had an audience with the “King of Cocktails”
himself. The following recipes come from Dale DeGroff,
former bartender at New York's famous Rainbow Room, author
of the book The
Craft of The Cocktail and president and founder
of The Museum of the American Cocktail.
THE
ORIGINAL MARGARITA
Straight Up or On the Rocks, Not Frozen
Ingredients
3/4
ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
(Squeeze fresh lime juice the same day. Store lime juice
even for short periods on ice or in the fridge. Do not
store overnight.)
1 1/4 ounce Cointreau
(Use only Cointreau as the orange liqueur to retain clean
limey quality of the drink.)
1 1/2 ounces 100% blue agava plata (or silver)
Tequila
(Reposado can be used if it is aged in large or used barrels
that impart very little oak character.)
Preparation
Assemble all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled
with ice and shake well to a slow ten count. Strain into
the serving glass of choice (tumbler or cocktail glass
if served without ice). If salting the rim of the glass,
use only Kosher salt, never iodized. Just salt half the
glass.
THE
ORIGINAL MARGARITA BATCH
One gallon or about 47 4.5-ounce margaritas
The
batch cannot be assembled simply by multiplying the ingredients
by the number of drinks you would like to make. Additional
sweetness in the form of simple syrup, and a little less
tequila and lime juice is needed to make the batch work
for 47 portions.
Don't
forget to take into account the shaking of the drink,
which provides the final and critical ingredient of any
cocktail: the one ounce of water added by shaking. That
is why it is so critical to shake a drink well and for
the proper time.
Ingredients
32
ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
16 ounces simple syrup*
36 ounces Cointreau
44 ounces 100% blue agave plata tequila
Preparation
Assemble all the ingredients in a container just a bit
larger than a gallon and adjust sweetness with lime juice
and simple syrup. If it tastes good to you, it is probably
good.
Remember individual servings still must be shaken with
ice, even if the mixtures is already chilled.
Note:
To use the batch above for margaritas, an additional 1
1/2 to 2 ounces of simple syrup must be added to the blender
for each serving to carry the flavor forward through all
the additional water.
*
How to Make Your Own Simple Syrup
Fill a container that has a screw top half way up with
granulated sugar (if your grocer has Superfine or Bar
sugar use that). Fill the rest of the way with pure water.
Screw on the top, turn upside down and shake well. Set
aside and if sugar settles out, shake well again to dissolve.
It is not necessary to cook and room temperature water
will do fine.
| P061506 |
Updated:
(06/08/07 JW) |
