Tequila, triple sec, and lime are the basic ingredients of a margarita, but what happens if you get 11 different bartenders to make their version of the same cocktail? From the luxury of the Plaza Hotel to home mixologists, see how these bartenders put their own spin on the classic marg.
Director: Paz Mendez Hodes
Director of Photography: Kevin Dynia
Editor: Rob Malone
Talent: Arianne; Channing Centeno; Chris Cardone; Katie Auth; Kevyn Fairchild; Kitty; Laura Royer; Maureen Donohue; Riley Mac; Takuma Watanabe; Tim Sweeney
Director of Culinary Production: Kelly Janke
Coordinating Producer: Kevyn Fairchild
Line Producer: Joseph Buscemi
Associate Producer: Amy Haskour
Production Manager: Janine Dispensa
Production Coordinator: Fernando Davilla
Camera Operator: Jack Belisle
Assistant Camera: Roberto Hererra
Sound Mixer: Lily Van Leuwen
Food Stylist: Sara Hormi
Culinary Assistant: Widza Gustin
Post Production Supervisor: Andrea Farr
Post Production Coordinator: Scout Alter
Supervising Editor: Eduardo Araujo
Assistant Editor: Justin Symonds
Designer: Lea Kichler
Director: Paz Mendez Hodes
Director of Photography: Kevin Dynia
Editor: Rob Malone
Talent: Arianne; Channing Centeno; Chris Cardone; Katie Auth; Kevyn Fairchild; Kitty; Laura Royer; Maureen Donohue; Riley Mac; Takuma Watanabe; Tim Sweeney
Director of Culinary Production: Kelly Janke
Coordinating Producer: Kevyn Fairchild
Line Producer: Joseph Buscemi
Associate Producer: Amy Haskour
Production Manager: Janine Dispensa
Production Coordinator: Fernando Davilla
Camera Operator: Jack Belisle
Assistant Camera: Roberto Hererra
Sound Mixer: Lily Van Leuwen
Food Stylist: Sara Hormi
Culinary Assistant: Widza Gustin
Post Production Supervisor: Andrea Farr
Post Production Coordinator: Scout Alter
Supervising Editor: Eduardo Araujo
Assistant Editor: Justin Symonds
Designer: Lea Kichler
Category
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00The elements of a classic margarita are a good tequila, an orange liqueur, which is
00:19Cointreau, freshly squeezed lime juice, and some sort of sweetener, my agave syrup.
00:25And really these are the only four ingredients that you need for a good margarita.
00:29And I'm going to put some fresh ice in here.
00:31I'm going to give it a really, really good shake.
00:36A margarita should be shaken about 15 times to make it really extremely cold.
00:41So then I'm going to take a rocks glass.
00:43I like to do a half salt rim.
00:45That gives people the choice whether they want the salt or not.
00:48The orange allows the salt to go on very easily.
00:52A large ice cube keeps it extra cold.
00:56We finish it off with a little bit of a lime wheel here to give it some color.
01:06Unlike the martini, unlike the old-fashioned, I am less draconian in how you do a margarita.
01:13I think you could do them many different ways.
01:15Each bar has their own personality with it.
01:17So the margarita I'm making is known as a Tommy's margarita.
01:20It was invented in San Francisco in the 90s at a bar called Tommy's Mexican.
01:26So when it comes to a margarita, I'm sure you're going to get a lot of folks on here
01:28that does it the classic way.
01:30You're going to have your tequila.
01:32You're going to have your lime juice.
01:33No difference here on that one.
01:34A lot of people are going to use orange liqueur.
01:37I am going to use agave syrup.
01:39The agave loves the lime.
01:41So we're going to put a full ounce of lime juice in here.
01:43When it comes to your regular margaritas, you can pretty much use any kind of tequila
01:46you want.
01:47You can use a silver blanco.
01:48I find that with these ingredients, it works best with the reposado.
01:52Tommy's Mexican themselves use a reposado.
01:55People might argue with that.
01:56Now the question of the rim of a margarita.
01:58Some people want absolutely no salt.
02:00Some people want salt.
02:02Some people want spicy salt.
02:03All those things.
02:04I'm not going to use salt if I have no information on it because I don't want to do that.
02:08But if I use salt, I have a hard fast rule.
02:11I am going to do a half rim of salt around it.
02:13Now we're shaking this margarita.
02:17Small glass into large glass.
02:18I filled the small with my spirits.
02:20I filled the large with my ice.
02:21Why do I do that?
02:22Because maybe I get distracted and I got to walk around and that way the ice is not sitting
02:26in here and the drink is going bad.
02:28Citrus loves agitation and the way that it combines, it changes the complexion of the
02:32cocktail.
02:33Citrus works well with aggressive and violent ice.
02:37When it comes to no citrus, it does not work as well.
02:40You're just trying to dilute the cocktail.
02:42Citrus is meant to change the cocktail.
02:43I always suggest to people to use the chicken wing of beer.
02:46That ice is going to hit every part of that inner cylinder.
02:49I would say eight to ten seconds is the good amount.
02:51Shaking is always hard for people.
02:53Sometimes you use brute force, but you should be able to just hit it like that.
02:57We're going to fill our glass with ice.
02:58Then we get to the part that I kind of have a little bit of an issue with, but I understand
03:04it completely.
03:05Margaritas almost universally come with a lime on there.
03:08It looks better.
03:09I understand that.
03:10It adds color to it.
03:11The thing about it is people tend to take this off so much and squeeze this in there.
03:15It's already got the perfect amount of lime juice.
03:17You're just over, you're putting too much citrus in it, but I can't fight tradition.
03:26I work at Paradise Sauce, which is going to be a tiki bar.
03:29We try to use the same templates of classics, but using unexpected ingredients.
03:35These are going to be the Bitterman's Hellfire Bitters.
03:37They just give a really beautiful habanero spice to the cocktail without totally overwhelming
03:41it.
03:42You're going to start off with smaller, more intense ingredients that cost a little bit
03:45less.
03:46You can just toss it out and you won't have to worry about wasting any booze.
03:49I'm going to be using some lime cordial, galangal agave, and hibiscus grenadine.
03:53These will all sweeten the margarita.
03:54That's way too much.
03:56She's going in.
03:57It's just not a margarita without lime juice, even at a tiki bar.
04:00For our spirits, instead of the traditional tequila, I'm going to be split basing.
04:04Split basing is a technique used in tiki cocktails that elongates the base that you're going
04:07to be using for your drink.
04:09Instead of just using tequila, we're going to switch it up.
04:11The bases today that we're splitting up are going to be a farfret de bois, a strawberry
04:15liqueur.
04:16This is substituted for your traditional triple sec, a little bit of spicy jalapeno tequila,
04:21and some macroute leaf infused mezcal.
04:23We're going to be using this Hamilton Beach blender in order to flash blend our cocktail.
04:30Flash blending is a technique that's ubiquitous within the tiki scene.
04:33It just aerates, dilutes, and chills your tiki cocktail, especially when you're using
04:37crushed ice.
04:38We're going to add a little bit of soda into the bottom of our glass so it fully incorporates
04:41into this cocktail.
04:42This cocktail, since we flash blended it, has way more head, that really nice frothy
04:47top that's just kind of laughing and smiling at you while you're drinking it.
04:51A common misconception with tiki drinks is that because they have so much ice in them,
04:55you're actually watering down your drink.
04:57More ice built on top actually makes it water down less.
04:59If I didn't put this much ice into this drink, it would actually water down much faster and
05:03you wouldn't be able to enjoy it at the proper balance that you'd like.
05:06Now it's time for the fun garnishes.
05:08We're going to add a little bit of fresh mint.
05:10What I'm doing here is what we call spanking the mint.
05:13It just wakes up a lot of those oils that are inside of the leaves, giving it more aromatics
05:17when you first pull that drink up.
05:19Up next is a macrute lime leaf.
05:20These are the leaves that we use to infuse into the mezcal.
05:23We wouldn't really be a tiki bar without a fun little serve, so we got a custom Paradise
05:27Lost Swizzle in here, as well as a little skeleton toy.
05:30This is our variation on a classic margarita.
05:33So I work at The Bush.
05:35It is a lesbian cocktail bar during the week, night club on Friday and Saturday night.
05:41So after 11pm, we switch to plastic cups.
05:44People are drunk, they're breaking things, we don't want them breaking our glassware.
05:48So nonetheless, I still rim the glass with tajin.
05:51We're going to start with lime juice, some Cointreau because it's better than triple
05:54sec.
05:56The girls at The Bush like their drinks a little bit sweet, so I do a couple dashes
06:00of simple syrup in the margarita and no one ever complains.
06:02Espalon, it's a good mid-level tequila.
06:06It's pretty non-controversial.
06:11You want to shake the hell out of it.
06:13We just dirty drop, it's quicker, and it's still delicious.
06:15If you want a little extra lime, boom.
06:18I keep saying boom, I don't know why, I think I'm on a cooking show.
06:21It's a perfect margarita.
06:24The margarita to me is the party cocktail, and flair is sort of the party aspect of bartending.
06:30Flair is just manipulating your tools in a really fun and exciting way to give your
06:34guests a little extra experience.
06:35We're going to make a margarita, so first I need to grab a tin to pour stuff into.
06:39We're going to start by putting just a quarter ounce of simple syrup.
06:43Again, the idea behind a margarita is that it's supposed to be a beautiful balance of
06:47sweet and sour.
06:48We're going to do fresh squeezed lime juice.
06:50So many bars and restaurants cut corners and they buy pre-juiced juice.
06:55When you use a Blanco tequila, you get sort of notes of minerality to it, like a slate.
07:00Combier, I think it is one of the better triple secs out there.
07:03To me, you don't need salt in a margarita.
07:05I find that salt was used back in the day for the fact that salt kind of dulls your
07:10senses and your taste buds.
07:11By using salt, it's kind of allowing you to use lesser products.
07:15I have no judgment on it, I just don't think it's necessary.
07:17I like the expression that when you shake a cocktail, you wake it up, and a margarita
07:21is certainly a cocktail that you want to wake up.
07:24So we're going to give it a nice good shake.
07:28Another thing a lot of bartenders make the mistake of is they don't put fresh ice in
07:33their glass.
07:34They just do what is actually known as a dirty dump, which is where you simply take the cocktail
07:38and just dump those ingredients that you just shook into the glass.
07:41So I'm going to add fresh ice so that way the drink doesn't over dilute, and we're going
07:45to strain it out with our Hawthorne strainer.
07:48So we'll strain this out, we'll make a beautiful margarita.
07:52So some people just put it on the glass, but I prefer to throw it in like that.
07:58Margarita.
07:58Enjoy.
08:01I got an applause!
08:02Boom!
08:05I work at a neighborhood bar and margaritas are a common order.
08:09People expect their margaritas to be in a glass this large, and it's just not really
08:12the traditional margarita.
08:13So I've kind of come up with an adaptation that you don't have acid reflux for the next
08:18four days.
08:19Starting with ice in the glass, I add the tequila.
08:22Espolon's a fantastic tequila.
08:23It doesn't have any artificial flavors.
08:26Triple Sec would be next, or Cointreau, whatever you have.
08:29Any orange liqueur would be fine.
08:30So most neighborhood bars would use a sour mix off the gun, but I do my own because I
08:34find it to be too acidic.
08:36So I do lemon, lime.
08:38That being said, I even add a little simple syrup into mine just to cut the acid just
08:42a little bit.
08:43I just do a quick rim of the glass with the lime.
08:45A lot of people just use salt, but I like to use Tajin.
08:48And then in the glass, you're going to want to put some fresh ice, and then just give
08:51it a really good shake.
08:57No strainer because I do everything wrong.
09:01And there's just a margarita.
09:03Donna Ewe's is a family-run steakhouse on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
09:07People order margaritas, I'd probably say, maybe a quarter of the time.
09:10We have our shaker glass.
09:11I'm going to fill it with some ice.
09:13Cointreau is a classic addition to margaritas.
09:16It's an orange liqueur.
09:17Very smooth.
09:18A lot of people, if they want to cut costs, will use Triple Sec.
09:21If I don't use this, I'd use Grand Marnier.
09:22Now I'm pouring my lime juice.
09:24It's smooth.
09:25Some of the lime juice you use is bitter, so it's no fun.
09:30Trezamana.
09:31It's a very smooth Blanco tequila.
09:33I free-pour all my drinks at Donna Ewe's.
09:34All of my bartenders free-pour all their drinks at Donna Ewe's.
09:37There's no measurements.
09:38My father, years ago, would have me set up with bottles of water and ice cubes and have
09:44the proportions correct so you knew exactly what you were doing.
09:47I don't know why it adheres to the rim of the glass the way it does, but coarse margarita
09:51salt works the best for us, so we use it.
09:58And then you just pour it in and there's your margarita.
10:01I like to squeeze the lime into my margarita at the end of making the margarita because
10:04the flavor of the lime will be sitting right on top of your cocktail.
10:07As a home bartender, I know that it can get far more complicated than this, but I like
10:13a classic, simple lime margarita.
10:16If you can just get some fresh limes, juice them real quick, it's gonna be a much better
10:20margarita.
10:21And then I've got just a little bit of simple syrup, which is really easy to make.
10:24It's equal parts sugar and water.
10:25I'm gonna be using the Espolon Blanco tequila.
10:28I personally really like the Blanco tequilas for margaritas.
10:31This is a pretty good price for one.
10:33And let's face it, I'm a home bartender, so I like it a little bit strong.
10:37And then we're gonna go just a hint of this triple sec.
10:40I'm gonna give this a little bit of a mix and then I'm honestly gonna taste it just
10:44to see if it needs anything else.
10:46So let's give it a taste.
10:47You know what?
10:48That's pretty good as it is.
10:49A lot of people will salt the outside of their glass.
10:51I personally have never been very good at salting the outside of the glass, so I just
10:54put it in.
10:55Throw in that lime to make it a little bit fresher.
10:58And we're in.
11:00First thing I'm going to do is I'm actually going to salt my glass.
11:04I like a half rim.
11:06Just kind of gives people the option for salt.
11:08I work at a high volume bar and I make so many margaritas.
11:12I have to make them super fast, too.
11:14Today I am making a mezcal Tommy's margarita.
11:18Mezcal is roasted, which is why you get that smoky flavor that's very distinct.
11:23Tommy's margarita by trade is one ounce of lime juice versus three quarter ounce of agave.
11:31So I'm gonna go in.
11:34And then I'm gonna follow that up with two ounces of mezcal.
11:37I'm gonna throw some ice.
11:43I'm going to garnish with a beautifully sliced lime wheel.
11:55A lot of garnishes are just there as simply a garnish.
11:59It's not meant to be expressed into the cocktail.
12:01It's supposed to make it look cute.
12:02Today I'm going to make you my favorite version of a margarita, which is a take on a take
12:09of the classic margarita.
12:11So a Cadillac margarita is a margarita that substitutes the triple sec for Grand Marnier.
12:17Cadillac is the most popular margarita after the classic margarita and the Tommy's margarita.
12:21Grand Marnier is going to be an orange liqueur, just like a triple sec made in Cognac, France.
12:28And it adds kind of like a deeper vanilla spice kind of note to it.
12:31The Grand Marnier kind of darkens the color of the margarita a little bit more, so it
12:35might look a little bit different than your nice light green margarita.
12:39My margarita variation is going to be a Calamansi Cadillac margarita.
12:44I take a culinary approach to cocktails.
12:46When working with different chefs in different restaurants, I try to use ingredients they
12:50already have in-house.
12:51So we're using Rose's lime juice now, which is a shelf-stable lime juice.
12:56We're using what I call my agave trinity.
12:59Reposado tequila is an aged tequila.
13:02You have ricea.
13:03With ricea, you're going to have a greener, more earthy kind of vibe, but it's still agave.
13:09This next thing we're using, even though I say it's in the agave trinity, it's not
13:13agave.
13:14Sotol is made from a plant that closer resembles asparagus.
13:18It really resembles like dark, super dark green grass, herbaceous.
13:24It's really fun to play with in cocktails.
13:27So I rim the glass with kind of like my house-made tajin.
13:30I use gochugaru, which is a Korean chili flake.
13:34I use a little bit of salt, a little bit of citric acid, and a little bit of MSG.
13:46So I'm going to make yukari margarita.
13:49Let's make it.
13:51The first, the Lost Expo mezcal eight years espadrille.
13:56It gets a lot of floral notes.
13:58It's like a red berry and sun acid.
14:02This is ume liqueur, homemade.
14:04This is a replacement of the triple sec.
14:06Ume is a Japanese plum.
14:08The lime can be like a more green flavor profile.
14:11Ume and yukari, this more kind of lemon citrus image of the cocktail.
14:17So I always taste and adjust it.
14:20Perfect.
14:22For example, tomorrow lemon and today's lemon is a different acid, so you have to manage
14:27all the time.
14:28That's why every single time I try to taste before I shake.
14:32So the yukari powder has red shiso flavor with a touch of salt.
14:37Yukari is a Japanese seasoning, usually making for the rice bowl in Japan.
14:46Our shaking process is very, very specific.
14:55It's called Japanese heart shake.
14:56It means not gentle, gentle, but at the same time.
15:00So you can see, like, control the ice.
15:06Very precise of the temperature and try to control the aeration.
15:11Shiso on the top.
15:14Enjoy.
15:17And of course, every margarita should start with a lick of the salt.
15:24Tommy's Mexican.
15:26I could drink that all day.
15:27Saturday.
15:28Best margarita in town.
15:29Wonderful.
15:30It's really strong.
15:31But really good.