Baja Bound

If you drive down the California coast and just keep goin’ and goin, you’ll find yourself in a place called Baja – more cactus than people, more time than worries and surrounded by the ocean and the sea. It’s a great place to slow down and play your guitar, and the perfect setting for romance – and Tequila. I hope these recipes bring a little of Baja to you, wherever you are.

The traditional drink of the blue agave harvest festival is the Cantarito, a refreshing celebration of Amatitan, Jalisco, and Mexico itself. The recipe is as follows: Over ice in a large glass, pour in 1 ½ oz of Partida Blanco tequila, 2 ½ oz of Schweppes tonic water, 1 ½ oz of fresh lime juice, 2 oz of orange juice, and 4 ½ oz of grapefruit juice. Garnish with diced pieces of each fruit.

Nothing could be more enticing on a hot sweltering day underneath the sheltering sky than a taste of sweet Lolita. In a chilled cocktail glass, shake & strain 2 oz Casa Vieja Anejo tequila,the juice of 1 squeezed lime, a teaspoon of honey, and 2 dashes of Angostura bitters. Garnish with a melon baller of honeydew.

For those of you whose palate favors the flavors of orange, lime and black raspberry, then indulge yourself in the preparation of the San Remo Martini. First in a shaker, than in a chilled martini glass goes 2 oz Corazon tequila, 1oz Chambord, 1oz Cointreau, and a dash of fresh lime juice. Garnish with a twist of orange peel.

If you’re a bit old fashioned, it doesn’t bother me. In fact, this drink is for you. The Chapala goes in an old fashioned glass filled with cubed or cracked ice, but you still have to shake & strain the ingredients well before you throw it over the ice. And they are: 1 ½ oz Don Julio Blanco tequila, a dash of Hiram Walker triple sec, a dash of Trader Vic’s grenadine, ¼ oz orange juice and ¼ oz lemon juice. Garnish with a cold slice of orange.

After a refreshing afternoon siesta with a gentle breeze caressing your hammock, you may want to take a walk over to the hotel bar and order a brisk cocktail La Paloma. The bartender will build it over ice in a tall glass, but here’s the recipe in case you want to make it when you get home: 2 oz Herencia de Plata Reposado tequila, the juice of a half lime, a pinch of salt, and fill with either Hanson’s grapefruit soda or Canada Dry club soda and a splash of grapefruit juice. Garnish with a slice of lime.

Even though there’s a little High Chaparral in all of us, one can only take so much the dust of getting thrown off again before you just have to leave the corral and call it a day. Ease the pain over an ice cold Doralto. Using a highball glass filled with cubed or cracked ice, shake & strain the following: 1 ½ oz Tequila 33, ½ oz Bols triple sec, a pinch of sugar and a dash of Fee Brothers old fashioned bitters. Strain in, top off with tonic water and garnish with a wedge of lime.

In the evening sometime after a nice meal, guillotine the cigar and enjoy a simple cocktail, my Compadre. Take a cocktail glass out of the refrigerator and stir-chill & strain the following: 1 ½ oz Cazadores tequila, ¼ oz Luxardo maraschino liqueur, a dash of grenadine for color,and 2 dashes of Fee Brothers orange bitters. No garnish, just sit back and fire one up.

Beaching it on any afternoon in the freedom of the summertime, there will be a time to rise up and brush off the sand before heading over to the nearest beach bar and ordering up a cocktail
while waving another solar goodbye. The Hermosa Sunset can go in a chilled martini glass or a tumbler over ice. Shake & strain the following: 1 ½ oz Patron Silver tequila, ½ oz of
Citronge, 2 oz Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice, 1oz fresh lemon juice and ½ oz simple syrup. Strain in or over, and garnish with a small bunch of red currants.

If this drink isn’t designed with a cabaret club in mind, I don’t know what is. And I still work at one in Hollywood once in a while when Tom calls me into The Gardenia on a sold-out night.
The Diva goes in a chilled martini glass, preferably a large one of course! That’s not all she’ll be going in, but that’s another torch song altogether! Anyway, the ingredients are: 1 ½ oz Patron Anejo tequila, ½ oz Citronge, 2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice, 1oz prickly pear syrup and ½ oz simple syrup. Shake & strain, and garnish with a lemon wheel.

Want a drink to bring out the devil in you ? The El Diablo may just be the potion for your notion. Grab a tall glass or footed goblet and fill it with cubed or cracked ice. Pour in 1 ½ oz Patron Reposado tequila, ¾ oz Marie Brizard Cassis de Bordeaux, juice of half a lime, and fill with ginger beer. Garnish with a wedge of lime. Devil, take me now . . .

If no one has ever tried this one out there in the world of cocktails yet, then you will soon.
The Tequilajito is a masterstroke of a classic takeoff from a now popular standard. So why not use the best for the best. The recipe is as follows: In a tall or pint glass, toss a small batch of mint leaves in the bottom and pour a ½ oz of simple syrup over them. Muddle the mint and syrup to bring up that brisk spearmint aroma. Squeeze 2 halves of 1 lime in the glass, leaving one hull in the bottom. Add 1 ½ - 2 oz Patron Gran Platinum tequila. Stir all, then fill the glass to the top with cracked ice. Top with Schweppes club soda and garnish with a mint sprig.

“Are you coming over for a nightcap, Darling ?
I’m making Cafe Royal . Good, I’ll see you
soon and make two.” You better hurry up. I can hear her footsteps. Let me see. Warm coffee glasses, 1 ½ oz Patron XO Cafe, fresh hot coffee, some freshly whipped cream, and a dust of cocoa powder over the top. That should do it. “Hi Sweetheart, let’s go out on the back patio, shall we ?”.

Hey everyone, just finishing up the typing of all the recipes that will be going into my new book titled
Cocktails of the American West
I hope to have it all complete by the end of August.

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