If you think tequila is only for shots or Margaritas, oh please—walk with me here for a little while. Set aside those bottom-shelf tequilas that are only half agave, and let’s see what a person can do with a rich, textured 100% agave tequila from a couple of shelves up.

Tequilas are not all alike. Far from it.

This particular exploration began a few weeks ago, as I was planning the “Cinco de Mother’s Derby” tasting we presented at Pinnacle Wine & Liquor on May 7. We featured three excellent spirits, each related to one of the three occasions that aligned within the space of four days this year: El Tesoro Tequila Blanco for Cinco de Mayo; Knob Creek 9 Year Bourbon for Kentucky Derby Day; and Sipsmith VJOP Gin for Mother’s Day. (I know. There’s no official drink of Mother’s Day, but she deserves something sparkling and I went with a gin and tonic. Don’t hate!)

More about the other cocktails in other posts to come. I hadn’t had El Tesoro before, and I was enchanted by it—so much so that I refused to show it in (forgive me) just another damned Margarita. I like Margaritas, and I’m sure it makes an excellent Margarita, but El Tesoro deserves more than to be hidden behind lime juice, orange liqueur, and the remaining contents of your salt shaker. It has amazing texture and minerality, with aromas of honey and white pepper.

I recalled being asked a while ago, by customers looking at vermouths for their Martinis, whether it’s possible to make a Martini with tequila instead of gin. Well, yes; gin and tequila are both strongly flavored, if differently, so why not try a tequila Martini? It’s sort of like a polite three-ounce shot, and you sip it instead of shooting it.

The essence of “Martini”

Let’s revisit briefly what the concept of “Martini” is—and no, it has nothing to do with the shape of the glass, despite what every chain sports bar in the country calls a “signature” Martini.

The idea of the classic Martini was to round off and lighten the sharper-edged flavors of gin by adding some vermouth. While details and proportions vary a lot, that’s it; the Martini is a two-ingredient gin* cocktail, possibly with a touch of citrusy bitters as seasoning. No fruit juice, no sweeteners, no chocolate or apple or such … just two ingredients.

If you search for “tequila Martini” recipes, you will find dozens of them on your first try, but most of the recipes I found were fruited derivatives of the Margarita and completely unfaithful to the premise of a Martini. But some do it right, and a few tequila Martinis later (no, I didn’t drink them all entirely), here’s where I landed.

About the other ingredients

While some tequila Martini recipes stick with dry vermouth, à la the classic dry Martini, I prefer pairing the tequila with a blanc vermouth (still ‘white,’ but full-bodied and just a little sweet) because it makes the tequila Martini’s flavor much rounder and more pleasing. (I prefer a blanc vermouth with the more pungent gins as well, so this didn’t surprise me.)

Of note, I use a few drops of 20% saline** in most of my cocktails these days, so using saline in this recipe is not to imitate a Margarita, but the hints of lime from the bitters and the garnish are a bow to tequila’s lime-and-salt heritage.

TEQUILA MARTINI
3 oz El Tesoro Tequila blanco
½ to ¾ oz Blanc vermouth (e.g., Dolin Blanc—not Dry)
3-4 drops Fee Brothers Lime Bitters
A pinch of salt, or 3 drops 20% saline**
 
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass with plenty of ice and stir until ice cold (30-40 revolutions). Strain into a chilled Martini glass or coupe, and garnish with a curl of zest carved with a channel knife from the skin of a fresh lime.

* A cultural and historical note: If a Martini is built using vodka, it’s a “vodka Martini,” not a “Martini,” just as we’re making a “tequila Martini” today. Vodka wasn’t even readily available around the United States until after World War II, by which time the Martini was most of a century old and well established as a gin cocktail.

** To make 20% saline: Combine one part of table salt with four parts of warm water and store (ideally) in an adequately-sized bottle with a dropper cap. You may need to shake it before each time you use it.