The Bar Towel

Damn right about the Chiléans and the Diablo series - good expression of grape types.

Tried one of the 1er Cru Burgundies, the
2006 Nuits-Saint-Georges from Vincent Sauvestre
VINTAGES 66464

Nice wine although honestly a bit sweet and simple for a 40 (originally 60) dollar Pinot - could be it had a little too much residual sweetness and needed a few more years to reach stellar complexity... so maybe it's my fault opening it early. Wine people call this "infanticide" to kill a wine off too young, but nothing stops me at times.

All said it certainly wasn't bad, it just did not go up to 'eleven' LOL!

The other super deal 1er Cru looks like it might be much better:
DOMAINE CAUVARD BEAUNE CENT VIGNES 2005
VINTAGES 84624 | $ 26.95

Now sipping Hauchat Fronsac, a good little $15 Bordeaux.

Just finished a wonderful Pinot Noir from New Zealand. It was available for a very short while at the LCBO but sold out within about a fortnight of hitting the province (well, there are 6 bottles left in Chatham).

The Palliser Estate Pinot Noir 2006. Pretty dark and full bodied for a pinot noir, but a typical southern hemisphere take on the style. Loads of fruit, but not overly sweet or cloying. Nice tannin bitterness on the tongue and a lovely long bitter/dry finish.

A shame it's all gone and not another order in sight

Does anyone have a recommendation for a brand of tequila?

To be used exclusively in mixed drinks - or does that mean that it doesn't really matter?

sstackho wrote:Does anyone have a recommendation for a brand of tequila?

To be used exclusively in mixed drinks - or does that mean that it doesn't really matter?

Good question. I used to just buy the cheapest gold tequila... Sauza?

I assume it's probably not 100% agave though...

Depends what kind of mixed drink you're making. If youre making frozen margs with flourescent green "mix" then it doesnt matter

Cazadores Reposado is one of the better tequilas available at the LCBO and is quite reasonably priced. Cabo Wabo is good but over priced. Everything else at the LCBO is just plain overpriced.

Yes, you really don't need the best Don Julio unless you are sipping it "neat." The $$$ finer flavors are lost.

But my sister in Mexico says Sauza gold is good stuff - you just want to avoid the white tequilas for headache prevention. (Holy smoke, you just made me check at what i've got and I never actually drink hard liquor. Some Cuervo Resposado brought up from Mexico and three kinds of Jamaican rum, all untouched, besides a 5-year-old bottle of Sauza gold I'll never finish.)

A wrote:Cazadores Reposado is one of the better tequilas available at the LCBO and is quite reasonably priced. Cabo Wabo is good but over priced. Everything else at the LCBO is just plain overpriced.

Good info here. Just did a quick US price check.

Cazadores Reposado
C$40 v US$30

Sauza Gold
C$32 v US$14

A wrote:Depends what kind of mixed drink you're making. If youre making frozen margs with flourescent green "mix" then it doesnt matter

Cazadores Reposado is one of the better tequilas available at the LCBO and is quite reasonably priced. Cabo Wabo is good but over priced. Everything else at the LCBO is just plain overpriced.

+ 1 with the Cazadores. It is good enough to sip neat, or add to mixed drinks.

Belgian wrote:Yes, you really don't need the best Don Julio unless you are sipping it "neat." The $$$ finer flavors are lost.

But my sister in Mexico says Sauza gold is good stuff - you just want to avoid the white tequilas for headache prevention. (Holy smoke, you just made me check at what i've got and I never actually drink hard liquor. Some Cuervo Resposado brought up from Mexico and three kinds of Jamaican rum, all untouched, besides a 5-year-old bottle of Sauza gold I'll never finish.)

That advice is unfortunately exactly wrong. The "Gold" stuff is fake reposado - it has even more crud added to it than a white (food colorings etc) to make it gold. Its still a mixto (ie. not 100% agave). It is these additives that are a major source of tequila hangover. Stick with 100% agave and it should be marked blanco, reposado or anejo, not white or gold or silver etc.

BTW I regularly make straight up margaritas (3 parts tequila, 2 parts cointreau, 1 part lime juice, shaken with ice and not frozen) and a better tequila absolutely makes a huge difference!

A wrote:

Belgian wrote:Yes, you really don't need the best Don Julio unless you are sipping it "neat." The $$$ finer flavors are lost.

But my sister in Mexico says Sauza gold is good stuff - you just want to avoid the white tequilas for headache prevention. (Holy smoke, you just made me check at what i've got and I never actually drink hard liquor. Some Cuervo Resposado brought up from Mexico and three kinds of Jamaican rum, all untouched, besides a 5-year-old bottle of Sauza gold I'll never finish.)

That advice is unfortunately exactly wrong. The "Gold" stuff is fake reposado - it has even more crud added to it than a white (food colorings etc) to make it gold. Its still a mixto (ie. not 100% agave). It is these additives that are a major source of tequila hangover. Stick with 100% agave and it should be marked blanco, reposado or anejo, not white or gold or silver etc.

BTW I regularly make straight up margaritas (3 parts tequila, 2 parts cointreau, 1 part lime juice, shaken with ice and not frozen) and a better tequila absolutely makes a huge difference!

Well respect mon... it sounds like you make GOOD margaritas without the fake premixed ingredients that ordinarily mask cheap mixto tequila. I will try your recipé using my reposado stuff! (And donate the fake gold stuff to my sister who drinks it.)

And I appreciate your candour on correcting my hearsay, I love being wrong if only to learn something. Maybe thanks to you I will get a taste for good tequila IN margaritas that don't taste like a sugary alco-pop slushy. Cheers!!

Give it a try - that's a recipe that I got hooked on at Frontera Grill restaurant in Chicago. You might want to start with 2 shots tequila, 1.5 shots cointreau, juice of one lime and .5 shots of simple syrup to start - a little less sour. Make sure to salt the rim of the glass! This recipe works well with a blanco or a reposado, I wouldn't recommend using an anejo though.

Getting hooked on tequila in Ontario is even worse than beer used to be My favorite tequila is called Ocho and its only available in two places right now - Los Angeles and London! (You can't even buy it in Mexico, but I visited the distillery in February and was gifted a couple bottles by the master distiller) Its made by the same guys who do El Tesoro de Don Felipe which is another wonderful tequila and fairly readily available in the US.

sstackho wrote:

A wrote:Cazadores Reposado is one of the better tequilas available at the LCBO and is quite reasonably priced. Cabo Wabo is good but over priced. Everything else at the LCBO is just plain overpriced.

Good info here. Just did a quick US price check.

Cazadores Reposado
C$40 v US$30

Sauza Gold
C$32 v US$14

Speak of the devil...
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/foo ... le1189614/

The printed version has a "top tequilas for mixing" side-bar:

With Cazadores... "Spicy, with a long finish. The winner for intensity of flavour and spicy backbone. Sneak a sip before mixing".

El Jimador Reposado at $32. "The best-value reposado made from 100% agave. Very dry and balanced".

Leyenda del milagro silver at $43 and a couple others at $82+. Now I like some flavour in a mixed drink... but that seems like a waste.

Ha! Good timing.

Here's the full sidebar:

Top tequilas for mixing

CABO WABO REPOSADO, $82

Rocker Sammy Hagar's brand now owned by Gruppo Campari, round and faintly sweet, with pleasantly thick viscosity and full flavour. The crowd pleaser.

CAZADORES REPOSADO, $40

Spicy, with a long finish. The winner for intensity of flavour and spicy backbone. Sneak a sip before mixing.

EL JIMADOR REPOSADO, $32

The best-value reposado made from 100-per-cent agave. Very dry and balanced.

LEYENDA DEL MILAGRO SILVER, $43

Like an herb- and chili-infused vodka, silky and slightly sweet. Good enough to sip on its own, too.

OLMECA TEZON REPOSADO, $90

Deliciously delicate, with big citrus flavour and lots of spice.

Just picked up a few affordable ($25) recommended Bordeaux to try:
Ch. Couréges 2005
Ch. Beaumont 2005 (Medoc)

also some reputedly good-value Galévan 2007 Cotes-du-Rhone, ($15)

and some 2005 Laplace Madiran, ($12) also at Vintages but good value plus it's on sale and will be great with spicy garlic sausage.

Belgian wrote:Just picked up a few affordable ($25) recommended Bordeaux to try:
Ch. Couréges 2005
Ch. Beaumont 2005 (Medoc)

also some reputedly good-value Galévan 2007 Cotes-du-Rhone, ($15)

and some 2005 Laplace Madiran, ($12) also at Vintages but good value plus it's on sale and will be great with spicy garlic sausage.

You won't be disappointed with that Rhone wine. $15 is a steal for that one. Its been selling by the case at my store. Too bad I only ordered a few.