How To Make Tequila At Home

Is One Oven Better Than The Other

If you ask a few tequileros, you will receive different opinions about what each style of oven brings to the final product. It is a great debate some people will compare the modern autoclave to a microwave and the brick oven to using a traditional oven in your kitchen. Do tequilas from an autoclave have a diminished flavor.

This single step does not consign one to a bad tequila. Instead, it is the culmination of every step in the tequila-making process, from the agave to the barrel, that will affect the final product’s quality.

Extracting The Agave Nectar

As previously stated, to manufacture pure tequila, your wash must be made from the Blue Weber Agave plant. However, considering the difficulties you may face in harvesting agave plants, you may take the less stressful option of sourcing Blue Agave nectar elsewhere.

If using the conventional method, you need to bake the harvested and cut up piñas for about 24 to 48 hours to turn complex carbohydrates into simple fermentable sugars. Following that, you should use mechanical crushers to extract the juices from the pinas. Next, rinse the mashed product with water to assist in extracting the juices.

At home, you can chop the pina into little pieces or mince it in a food processor. The next step is to mash the little pina pieces while collecting the extracted juice in a nectar container. Mash them till no liquid comes out of them. Squeeze the remaining nectar into the nectar bowl by pressing the mashed agave against a fine wire mesh strainer with the back of a wooden spoon.To eliminate filterable solid particles, place a paper filter in a funnel and pour the nectar through this funnel into another bowl. Youve got it now. Your own Blue Agave nectar.

Fortunately, Blue Agave nectar is readily available in most grocery stores and online, so you will not need to harvest the agave plant to prepare the mash for your fermentation. This has the advantage of reducing your processing time.

Tequila Sunrise Recipe Tips

• Want to make a tequila sunset? Replace the substitute the grenadine syrup with crème de cassis or blackberry brandy and youll have a tequila sunset.
• Havent got any orange juice? Use grapefruit juice instead, itll change the flavor, but it still works very well.
• No orange slice or cherry? Just use a brightly colored straw instead.

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Is Tequila Sunrise A Girly Drink

This colorful and fruity drink is ideal for those who want a cocktail drink without a boozy flavor. Some may see the colorful cocktail as a girly drink.

However, is there really such a thing? Is tequila sunrise a girly drink? Hmm. Perhaps, perhaps not.

Regardless if youre a man or a woman, if you like the flavor of the drink bottoms up!

Tequila Sunrise Shot Recipe: The How

First, dont be intimidated! Yes, the Tequila Sunrise does have a long and storied history, with a movie, a hit song, a quilt pattern, and even several flowers named after it! But really, its very simple to make for yourself, and add your name to the Tequila Sunrise legend!

Dont worry. Its not difficult to get that sunrise effect that makes this drink so easy on the eye. No special qualifications are required! The process occurs naturally.

Thanks to the thick pomegranate-flavoured grenadine syrup, when its poured into the glass, it sinks to the bottom and, only then, slowly rises up, its rich red colour just like a glorious sunrise.

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Why Can Tequila Only Be Made In Mexico

According to Mexican law, tequila production is permitted only in Jalisco and a few municipalities in Guanajuato, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Tamaulipas.

The blue agave plant, which is the principal raw material for tequila production, only grows in these areas.

Our post Can tequila be made outside of Mexico? answers this in more detail.

Joven Or Gold Tequila

Joven or gold tequila is unaged tequila that is typically colored and flavored with caramel, oak extracts, or syrups. Basically, you can use a Blanco tequila and add in an extract to achieve the gold or caramel coloring. Gold tequilas look very similar to Reposado tequilas. There are simply labeled as Gold on the bottle.

After you age your tequila how you like it , bottle it up, grab some limes and enjoy. You earned it!

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The Coolest Quarantine Project Ever Making Tequila At Home

Update: This project continues! You can follow our progress in the Lotecito Log.

In this strange pandemic year asking adults what they did during quarantine has become as common as asking kids what they did during summer vacation.

While most of North America was in peak sourdough bread making, we decided to tackle a different kind of project. Since we live in the Mexican state of Jalisco, have tequila industry friends, and an endless curiosity about tequila production, we thought wed try to make our own tiny batch of tequila, or agave spirit, by hand.

Our goal: make something drinkable.

Weve been through enough distilleries to know that tequila making isnt easy. One misstep along the way could ruin an entire batch, so we made sure to have several phone-a-friend connections* in place from the very start.

After doing the math, we decided that we would need one cooked blue weber agave piña. Being optimistic, we aimed for 4 liters, using what would no doubt be a less efficient method.

But, where to get the cooked agave? This is the one step we could not do ourselves since we couldnt figure out how to slow cook a 50 kilo agave at our house. We shared our plan with Guillermo Erickson Sauza, Founder of Tequila Fortaleza, and he was amused by our project.

You can get one from me, he said. So we were off to the Fortaleza distillery in the town of Tequila to pinch an agave fresh from the oven.

Watch The Minhas Distillery Youtube Video For Step

Theres no denying it, our Alamo Mexican Tequila is the best tequila for margaritas. Try it in all your margarita recipes and youll get a perfect margarita every time! And, if you are looking for some new creative margarita recipes then try out the Minhas Distillery Watermelon Cucumber Margarita recipe and the Sriracha Margarita recipe. They are creative and unique recipes, perfect margaritas for refreshing tequila cocktails to sip on a hot summer night or to serve at your next BBQ. Trust us, if you use either margarita recipe when you are entertaining your friends, and make it with Alamo Tequila, the best tequila for margaritas, youll quickly get the rep as the host with the best margarita recipe ever!

In the Mexican state of Jalisco, volcanic soil cradles the blue agave plants that create Alamo your new favorite tequila. And the Hernandes Estate near Guadalajara located high in the mountains provides the perfect combination of sunlight, soil and moisture for growing the best quality Weber Blue Agave nature can produce. These unique spirits are fermented and distilled according to stringent Tequila Regulatory Council guidelines and we print our Norma Oficial Mexicana designation number on every bottle so you can be assured you are getting nothing less than certified authentic tequila. Together, the regions natural bounty and estates craftsmanship create a collection of tequilas unlike any other available in Canada.

Recipes

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Fermentation: Where The Magic Happens

Its probably the most important step in the process because thats where many of the aromas and flavors come from, Grover said. We did a lot of advanced research on this and eventually came up with a plan.

We chose a champagne yeast because it can handle higher temperatures . This yeast strain is known for its slow-and-low characteristics. We werent in a rush, and feared a bubbling fermentation that might overflow the tanks.

We also decided to ferment without fibers, for two reasons: first, the fiber cap that forms at the top of the tank could cause it to overheat, and secondly, we wanted to keep methanol levels down in the final product . Also, we didnt want the fiber to take up too much space in our limited-capacity tanks.

Some of our favorite tequilas ferment without fibers , so we werent worried about missing out on flavor. Generally, when the production process uses a tahona or is crushed by hand, fibers are put into the fermentation tank simply because the extraction process is not as efficient, giving the yeast an extra opportunity to eat the sugar that is still sticking to the fibers.

We pitched the yeast at 78 F, and then allowed it to ferment naturally, outside on our covered rooftop. Within 24 hours, the activity caused the temperature to rise to 83 F. However, after checking in with a few of our tequila friends, they were worried that the temperature was too low, and we werent doing enough to regulate it.

A Step By Step Guide To Making Tequila

Believe it or not, its really not that hard to make Tequila at home. If youre familiar with the distilling process, its not too different from making a brandy, whiskey or rum!

Weve put together the following 6 step guide to making tequila-based on what weve found works best, combined with what works at home and is accessible to the weekend distiller. Of course, there are going to be some experts reading this who say no, thats not quite right do it this way.. but lets just preface this by saying that we think this is a great starting point, and its up to you to experiment once you get the hang of things.

Read on as we share our 6 steps to making great tequila at home, easy as!

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History Of A Tequila Sunrise

For all of the fanciful histories of the tequila sunrise it is most likely a variation of the Singapore Sling. A gin sling, Ngiam Toon Boons Singapore classic combined gin, a cherry liqueur, Cointreau, and pineapple juice, with fresh lime juice and soda water.

Within twenty years, the Singapore Sling was reinvented, trading out the cherry for creme de cassis, pineapple juice for orange, and losing the Cointreau altogether. The lime juice and soda were also nixed, but worth trying if youre willing to experiment.

Sam Schick / Simply Recipes

I Love This Drink Because

• Looks amazing: Fun, light colors make this drink a must-try. I mean who doesnt love putting a cute two-toned drink on their Instafeed.
• 3 Ingredients: You only need 3 common ingredients to make this. Most people keep a bottom of Tequila on the house, but if you dont you can pick up an affordable choice at your local liquor store.
• No Fancy Bar Equipment: No cocktail shaker or blender is needed.
• Sweet Taste: The tangy orange juice and sweet grenadine make this a favorite among those who dont drink very often.

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Get The Tools You Need

There are a lot of tools youll need, which are used both for the harvesting process and also for the distilling process.

You need safety gear to avoid burns and pokes from the agave sap and spines, as well as a sharp tool, ideally a machete or even an edged tool that you can use to remove the leaves. On top of that, you also need something to cut through the heart of the agave.

The tool that most distilleries use is called a . Its a round, flat tool on the end of a long handle. Its used by driving the metal end down into the base of the leaves and shaving them off.

Next, you need an oven and trays large enough to hold a whole agave heart. This needs to go into an oven for at least ten hours to cook down and make it safe to consume.

Youll also need a still. These may also need to be registered, so check with your state. These should be large enough to hold all of the juice, and you need to have a space to store them safely.

How To Make Your Own Tequila In 6 Easy Steps

I have to be honest with you, tequila was never my jam. In college, there was too much of it, there was usually a worm involved and the smell just made me gag. It also causes a weird side effect for me. It makes me go all vampire on people and try to bite anyone within a two-feet radius. It’s not pretty.

However, in recent years, everyone I know has started drinking it – but on another level. Not as a cheap mixer for a margarita, or as a slammer , but as a high-end liquor on its own, often without lime. I was confused. “But it’s so awful,” I said to my friend in Los Angeles.

“Try it,” he said, offering me some 49-month, barrel-aged tequila. I took a deep breath, steeled my stomach and… it was delicious. Like scotch. I was considering converting when an invite to the Herradura Tequila Factory in Amatitan, Mexico came through.

“Sign me up!” I said and a week later there I was at the distillery in the agave fields surrounding the Amatitan Mountains.

The Herradura hacienda has been run by the same family for 184 years and is the perfect blend of old school and new technology. My guide, Ruben Aceves, hoisted me on a horse and we rode out to the agave fields, where I started my “How To Make Tequila in Six Steps.”

“It’s easy,” Ruben said.

Ruben is a liar.

To Learn how to make Tequila – or, How to do the Tequila Work Out of Your Life, Click HERE

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How Do You Make A Tequila Sunrise

First, fill your glass with ice. I like to go at least 3 quarters full.

Then, add the tequila, pouring it over the ice.

Next, add the orange juice.

Finally, slowly pour in the grenadine so it settles on the bottom and finish with a cherry on top.

Make sure to pour the grenadine slowly so it settles on the bottom.

Blanco Silver Or White Tequila

Blanco tequila is a transparent spirit that isnt necessarily completely colorless and is diluted with water, to the proper bottling ABV. To be considered a Blanco or silver tequila, you can mature or age the spirit in oak barrels for zero to two months. If you age your Blanco tequila for more than two months, it will be considered a Reposado tequila. Which well cover next.

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Erins Easy Entertaining Tips

Margaritas are a brilliant drink to make for any type of get-together, whether its a Mexican Dinner Party, Cinco de Mayo or just a random Tuesday when you want to have friends over for happy hour.

One of the best things about them is you can make them in batches, too, to make your life easier.

Here are a few thoughts on making margaritas with mix for entertaining:

• Juice your limes in advance. Alternately, consider purchasing the cold press lime juice from the refrigerated section of your grocery store. Yes, its more expensive than juicing your own, but its significantly faster unless you have an electric juicer.
• Make the simple syrup in advance, too. This stuff keeps in the fridge for weeks, so you dont have to make it the day youre making your homemade margarita mix.
• Double the homemade margarita mixrecipe if youre serving a crowd.
• Let guests mix their own margaritasor make a pitcher to make pouring even easier!

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Can I Make My Own Tequila At Home Is It Legal

While you can make your own liquor at home, you cannot technically call it tequila because it is not produced in recognized Mexican cities.

Home distillation is not lawful in many states. You may need to find out what applies in the region where you reside and apply for a licence depending on the rules. If youre concerned about the legality of home distilling, then check out our article Is Home Distilling Legal In My Country to find out more.

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How To Make Tequila Rose At Home

Megan earned her bartending and mixology certificates from Bar Smarts. She shares some of her cocktail creations in the video series, Cooper’s Cocktail Corner.

Learn about our Editorial Policy.

For those nights when you’re particularly craving the soothing sweetness of strawberries and cream but don’t want to have to run to the store to get them, it’d be helpful for you to know how to make Tequila Rose using the common household ingredients. Thankfully, making this popular mixture is as easy as making lemonade and tastes just as divine. Take a look through your spice rack and fridge and get ready to whip up your own pitcher with this homemade Tequila Rose recipe.

How Do You Make A Frozen Tequila Sunrise Version

Are you looking for a delicious way to start your day? Look no further than this frozen tequila sunrise recipe! It will keep you cool on a hot summer day.

This is a great drink to enjoy while relaxing on the beach, or even while lounging around in your backyard. Its refreshing and deliciousand its easy to make!

First, fill your blender with ice cubes and pour in 1 cup of orange juice. Add 1/2 cup of grenadine syrup, then add 2 shots of tequila. Blend it until it gets smooth and pour the drink into a glass. You can add a final touch: an orange slice or a cherry.

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