Make Mine A Margarita🎊Paloma Cocktail🍹
I’m putting the heavy cream, the bourbon and the sweet garnishes away (for a minute) to lighten things up for the new year. A Paloma Cocktail is wonderfully refreshing with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and tequila, not weighed down by lots of sweet fillers, its lightened up a bit more with the addition of soda water and freshly squeezed lime juice. Add a sweet, salty and spicy blend to the rim of the glass and you’re going to wonder why you hadn’t had one of these before.
Have you heard that sipping tequila has the reverse effects of consuming calories? If you sip tequila straight, no mixers, you actually burn more calories drinking it than it adds? Well, I’m no doctor, but I like that kind of math. I’d also heard that grapefruit is a fat burner, so here’s my formula for cocktail success! 😉
(DISCLAIMER: I am not a dietitian nor a doctor.👩🏻⚕️ I’m just an old bartender who’s actually an insurance broker and part-time blogger. What on earth 🌍 do I know anyway? So don’t go on a crazy tequila and grapefruit diet and then blame me.)
Here’s a link to an article from the New York Post that touts a bit of what I’m saying https://nypost.com/2016/05/05/tequila-is-one-of-the-healthiest-booze-choices/
Whether it’s all true or only a bit, here’s a recipe for a delicious and lighter tequila twist. It’s a Paloma Cocktail. If you’ve never tried one, give it a go, it’s quite delightful😋!
Someone Had To Do It!
Last spring I volunteered at an event that included a tequila tasting table. Hmmmmmm, so guess what I was doing? That’s right, along with some friends, I was handing out the little sips of tequila.
We started with the tequila silver. This is the most pure, not aged at all and best for margaritas and mixed drinks like the Paloma Cocktail. The silver was actually my favorite. Next we served a tequila gold. The barrel aging process adds flavor in addition to other flavoring and colors that are introduced. It’s a little higher end and good for sipping. Next we served the Anejo. This is the slow sipping kind of tequila, aged longer and with coloring and more flavors.
Aging and Flavoring
Tequila, like wine and other spirits also gets a lot of the flavor from the type of barrel used in the aging process. From no aging and no wood barrels to mixtures of wood from various regions. The tequila we were sharing had some aged in 100% french oak and some that was partially french oak and partially Hungarian oak. I can’t imagine being capable of detecting the differences.
Tequila Vs. Mezcal Vs. Agave
Tequila is only made inside Mexico, in the state of Jalisco. It’s also made in a few other municipalities (Guanajuato, Michoacan, Mayarit and Tamaulipas. All other agave based distilled alcohol is called “mezcal”. So……..all tequilas and mezcals are agave based. All tequilas are mezcals, but not all mezcals are tequila.
Expert Advice And Certainly Not A Blind Tasting!
I learned that in order to appreciate the taste of straight tequila, you really need just a tiny bit of water. It’s just like when the ice-cube melts a bit into a perfect bourbon, the flavor of the individual blend comes out. Adding just the tiniest amount of water to the alcohol helps bring out the various individual flavors from maker to maker or blends. The true aficionados advised that even a tiny eye dropper of water would make all the difference. We will arrive armed with water droppers next time!
That’s also the day that a few of the kind tasters advised me that to sip straight tequila was a good way to keep the weight off. Well, I may just start taking that advice. Drinking wine is certainly not doing the trick.
The Paloma Cocktail!
Into a cocktail shaker filled 1/2 with ice, add 2 ounces of tequila silver. Next, add 2 ounces of freshly squeezed pink (ruby-red) grapefruit juice and 1/2 shot of either simple syrup* or agave syrup and 1/2 ounce of fresh lime juice.
Shake vigorously, then strain into a Collins glass or other tall cocktail glass filled with ice. Top with club soda or sparkling water.
If you want to rim the glass, just wet the rim with lime, then roll the rim of the glass in kosher salt.
For a prettier glass and a little spice, make a sweet chili lime salt. Mix 3 teaspoons granulated sugar or sanding sugar with 1 tablespoon kosher salt, add 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder and zest of 1 lime.
Mix well, then put onto a small saucer. Rim the glass with lime, then roll the rim in the chili lime salt
Cheers!
Notes
To make your own simple syrup, in a saucepan heat 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water to simmer. Once the sugar has melted completely, turn off the heat and let the mixture cool. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 weeks in a tightly sealed jar.
Ingredients
For the Cocktail
- 2 ounce tequila silver
- 2 ounces freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice
- 1/2 ounce simple syrup or agave syrup
- 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
- Club soda or sparkling water
For the Chili Lime Salt
- 3 teaspoons granulated sugar or sanding sugar
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- zest of 1 lime
Garnish: Rim with salt or Chili Lime Salt and 1/4 fresh grapefruit wedge or lime wheel
Instructions
For the Cocktail
- Into a cocktail shaker filled 1/2 with ice, add 2 ounces of tequila silver. Next, add 2 ounces of freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice and 1/2 shot of either simple syrup* or agave syrup. Shake vigorously, then strain into a Collins glass or other tall cocktail glass filled with ice. Top with club soda or sparkling water and a squeeze of lime juice.
- If you want to rim the glass, just wet the rim with lime, then roll the rim of the glass in kosher salt.
For the Chili Lime Salt
- Mix 3 teaspoons of granulated sugar or sanding sugar with 1 tablespoon kosher salt, add 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder and zest of 1 lime. Mix well, then put onto a small saucer. Rim the glass with lime, then roll the rim in the chili lime salt
