1800 Tequila had a contest to design custom bottles–and the winners are quite impressive. Tequila with the winning designs on the bottles are now available in limited release.

The one pictured here is by Shepard Fairey’s Studio Number One. This one would look great on display at your Halloween party, no?

All 12 winning designs are pretty rad. Check ‘em out!

NOTCOT rounded up the winning entries in an easy-to-peruse way … or you can head over to the 1800 Tequila site and get more info there.

Summer is still here. And depending on where you live, so is the sun! That means it’s the perfect time for popsicles. Of course, we believe everything is better with booze.

Along with Savvy Housekeeping, we experimented with alcoholic popsicles (cleverly called shotsicles!). The results were tasty. Chocolate Bourbon and Tequila Melon were the flavors we triumphed with, but a few substitutions and you can devise your own tasty flavor.

Shotsicles have to be low in alcohol because alcohol doesn’t freeze very well. To get them to work, you need to combine the alcohol with juices and syrups, and even then they take longer than your average pop to freeze. But they are worth the wait–sweet and delicious with a tinge of booze in the background, just enough to give the popsicle some edge.

The result won’t get you drunk, but it will taste great!
Shotsicle recipes @ Savvy Housekeeping
More on Boozy Popsicles @ The Bitten Word

Photo credit: Savvy Housekeeping

At the recent SF Chef’s food, wine and cocktail extravaganza, Skyy held a cocktail competition. The competition was held over 3 days and featured 6 top San Francisco bartenders. Each day featured spirit and secret ingredient, Iron Chef Style. The semifinals pitted 3 bartenders from a larger field of 15, the six would vie for a spot in the Finals. The finalists and winner would be picked by a panel of 3 judges. Cocktails would be judged on balance, presentation, use of the secret ingredient and other attributes.

Enjoy this day be day account.

Semifinal 1: Spirit - Whiskey, Secret Ingredient - Fresh Herbs

Drink 1 - Brandon Skaggs of Cortez - Irish Peach (Tullamore Dew, Cynar, peaches, sage, bitters, honey)
Drink 2 - Nick Varacalli of RN74 (Wild Turkey Rye, American honey, honey, canton, thyme) winner
Drink 3 - Joel Baker of Bourbon & Branch (Russels Rye, Luxardo, lemon juice, peaches, mint, Curaçao, bitters)

Semifinal 2: Spirit - Skyy Infusions, Secret Ingredient - Fresh Cherries, Apricots & Peaches

Cocktail 1 Carlo Splendorini of Gitane - (Skyy citrus, canton, ferlum, peach, orange, hot salt, chartreuse, ferlum) The Bouquet winner
Cocktail 2 - Scott Baird of Romolo 15 (Skyy passion fruit & pineapple, ferlum, cherry and more)
Cocktail 3 - Borys Saciuk of Zapatistia - The Passionate One (Skyy pineapple & passion fruit, peaches, apriocot, cherry, allspice dram & more)

Finals: Spirit, anything from Gruppo Campari, Secret Ingredient - Peppers

Nick vs. Carlo

Ambassador Pepper
by Nick Varacalli of RN74

1.5 oz. Wild Turkey Rare Breed
0.5 oz. Luxardo Maraschino Liquer
0.25 oz. Orange Curacao
0.25 oz. Velvet Falernum
0.75 oz. Lemon Juice
Dash of Orange Bitters
Muddled Red Pepper

Carlo Splendorini of Gitane Restaurant & Bar

1.5 oz. Cabo Wabo Reposado Tequila
1 oz. Malthilde Pear Liqueur
0.5 oz. Green Chartreuse Liqueur
1 tbsp. Honey
¾ oz. Lemon
Jalapeño

and the winner is …
Ambassador Pepper
by Nick Varacalli of RN74

photos & recipes courtesy Skyy Spirits

Summertime means light, refreshing cocktails! This one combines the delicate flavors of tangerine and lavender with the kick of tequila. The unique and slightly salty flavor of tequila really comes through. You can substitute rum for a slightly sweeter taste.

Tequila Tangerine Dream

1 tangerine (1/2 for juice and 1/2 for tangerine slices)
2 sprigs fresh lavender
1 oz. simple syrup
2 oz. silver tequila
crushed ice
club soda

Peel the tangerine. Juice half of it and set the juice aside. Remove pith from the other half and cut into small pieces. Put tangerine at the bottom of a tall glass, then add the syrup, juice and some lavender petals. Muddle this mixture.  Pour in tequila. Pack crushed ice on top of this and then top off with club soda. Garnish with lavendar or tangerine twists. (It’s prettier to leave the lavender petals in, but if you would be bothered by some getting in your mouth, strain them out)

Today, July 24 is National Tequila Day and to get in the mood we had an informal Tequila tasting in my kitchen. We tried several brands that have arrived in the last week or so and a few little bottles procured from the media schwag room at Tales of the Cocktail. Before we get into what we tasted, here’s a few quick facts about Tequila and Agave:

- Although there are more than 200 varieties of agave in Mexico, at least 51 percent of each bottle of Tequila must be composed of the sugars extracted from the Agave Tequilana Weber Blue variety

- The heart of the plant, the piña, where the juices are extracted from, can weigh between 80 and 130 pounds

- The plant’s growing cycle is of approximately 10 years, at which time it is recommended to extract the juices

- The agave is cooked in brick ovens for 50 to 72 hours although the more modern processes done in steel ovens last only 12 hours

- Mandated by Mexican Law, tequila can be produced only in the state of Jalisco and a few areas in the states of Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Tamaulipas.

- Tequila has 3 aging grades. Blanco/Plata aged for only 60 days in any type of barrel. Reposado, aged from 60 days to 1 year in wood, typically Oak. Anejo, aged in Oak for 1 - 3 years.

- Based on where the Agave is grown, the volcanic uplands or the lowland plateau surrounding Guadalajara, the resulting tequilas can be quite different. These are known as highland & lowland tequilas, these are unofficial styles and there is no indication on the label which is which.

Here’s what we tried, full reviews will follow:

Tres Generaciones
- Plata: Very smooth for an unaged tequila with hints of citrus and peppery heat at the finish.
- Reposado: Smooth with a hint of sweet oakiness.
- Anejo: Spicy and warm with a fine oak finish, This was our favorite of the night!
Voodoo Tiki - Anejo: Wins for best bottle, hand blown and beautiful. The tequila is also very fine with a mellow finish and hints of pepper and grass.
Cabo Wabo - Blanco: Initail burst of flavor, spicy, salty, even a bit olivey followed by a warm comforting finish.
Tequila Ocho - Plata: Interesting for a blanco, Tequila Ocho has a bit of a charred wood taste, hints of citrus and personality.
Partida
- Blanco: Light and fresh, what you want from a blaco.
- Reposado: Earthy and smooth.
- Anejo: Sharp tones with a mellow finish.
Hornitos - Plata: Not exactly for sipping, but perfect for a margarita.
Tanteo - Tropical, Chocolate and Jalapeno: These infused tequila were interesting, on the nose one could smell the mango in the Tropical and the chocolate and Jalapeno very pronounced. We felt these were best suited for cocktails.

more Tequila Cocktails and articles:

Tequila Cocktails
The Best Way to Drink Tequila - Details
Things We Think We Know About Tequila - Esquire

To celebrate National Tequila Day, we are featuring one of my favorite tequila cocktails, Paloma. This cocktail is a tall, cool and not to sweet. Tequila, lime and grapefruit juice (or soda). So nice on a hot July day.

Paloma

2 oz. Tequila (blanco or reposado)
1 oz. Lime Juice
4 - 5 oz. Grapefruit Juice or Soda
pinch of salt

Build in a tall glass over ice. Start with the tequila, lime juice and salt and then fill with grapefruit juice. Garnish with a lime wedge.

past Drink of the Week cocktails

I was doing some research on tequila and mezcal, and one bar was consistently mentioned with raves: Mayahuel in New York.

Tequila has often gotten a bad rap, due to its associations with Spring Break, hangovers, and the whole “eat the worm” thing. But it’s a very versatile spirit, as is its often-ignored cousin mezcal.

Mayahuel bartender Phil Ward loves the agave spirits, as evidenced by this great quote from his interview with BlackBook:

But it’s right back to that first part; the first tequila that was imported to the country was garbage because they knew that people would drink anything because they wanted to get drunk. And then for a long time, up until…maybe even ten years ago…most of the tequila people were drinking was like Jose Cuervo, which wasn’t even a representation of 100% blue agave tequila. So it was really a misunderstood spirit. I almost wanted to call this place was “La Verdad,” “The Truth,” because tequila and mezcal were so misunderstood by people, and we’re here to teach them.

I’m definitely heading over there on my next trip to NYC … to try the “Italian Inquisition,” which includes mole bitters, blood orange liqueur, and reposado tequila. Yes, please!

Mayahuel

Tequila! The future of Drinking… (@ BlackBook)

A Serious Spot for Tequila (@ Seattle PI)

Photo credit: BlackBook Magazine