THE QUAFF: A National Margarita Day Celebration of Don Julio!

Today is National Margarita Day, and in honor of the day, I plan to a) have a margarita later, and b) celebrate its most vital component: tequila! I’ve gained a recent appreciation for the notorious spirit, which had previously ranked low on my favorite alcohols. However, thanks to a handy tasting seminar in December courtesy of Jose Cuervo, I actually no longer approach tequila with apprehension and fear. In fact, I look forward to it. Imagine my pleasure when Don Julio sent me three complimentary bottles to sample: blanco, reposado, and anejo. This was a task I was only too happy to take on.

Well, just last week, my quaffing buddy Sly was down at my apartment watching the Grammys with me, and as we listened to Christina Aguilera screech and bellow her way through yet another horrific performance, we realized that this was the ideal time to bust out some tequila. And so that’s what we did.

Our experiences with Don Julio after the jump…

As Katy Perry descended on a rope swing from on high, Sly and I prepared for tequila fun.

Casual observers may notice only one proper bottle. That’s because I received only sampler bottles of the reposado and anejo (which I was more than happy with). For the record though, Don Julio just released new packaging for the blanco, reposado, and anejo variants as well as a cocktail concept called “The Luxury Drop” which is apparently a high end cocktail in a shot form. I feel like I’m a commercial, but I’m merely passing along this information because I’M SO EXCITED THAT I HAVE DON JULIO.

The Blanco has been uncorked. Amusingly, it looks like I’m holding a mushroom. I guess it’s not that amusing.

Smelling the cork. No shocker here: it smells like tequila.

Pouring the Don Julio. Although we’re not drinking from them, we brought out the smiley-faced shot glass for its spirit and the cactus shot glass for its Southwestern-ness.

Because this is a classy tequila, we use the classy shot glasses. However, there shall be no shots. Just gentle, appreciative sipping.

Cheers.

I don’t know what I was saying here. Probably something like “That was really good.” The blanco is smooth, peppery, and aromatic. We like.

The smiley-face shot glass (also known as the Andy Cohen) is down for the count.

The cactus follows suit. I don’t really know what was going on here. This was Sly’s creation.

The cactus proudly poses with the tequila. This reminds me of some long lost Far Side cartoon.

Meanwhile, Andy Cohen totally photobombs the pic.

Now the cactus is fighting with Andy.

But in the end, Andy has his way with the cactus.

On to the reposado…

I’m very excited about this next sampling as Don Julio Reposado is the tequila used in Supperclub’s marvelous Cactus Margarita (which you should try to get today in honor of the aforementioned National Margarita Day).

Some homemade sichuan glazed peanuts enter the equation, to the delight of the cactus.

Onwards and upwards.

As much as I liked the blanco, it’s nothing compared to the reposado. Aged and golden brown, this tequila goes down like a dream. I generally find reposados to be tastier than blancos, and it’s no exception with Don Julio.

Last but not least, we have anejo, which is aged the longest.

Sniffing to make comparisons. My nose, sadly, is not sharp enough to detect much difference.

We switch to Sly’s phone after my camera dies. We are determined to capture the anejo experience.

It begins.

Sipping.

Savoring.

Customary tequila face.

Aaaand happiness. The anejo was quite delicious too, and Sly liked it the most of the three. I gotta admit, however, that I’m partial to the reposado.

And now my tasting in gif form:

Anyway, thanks again to Don Julio for the tequila. This is high quality stuff, and while you can most certainly use it in margaritas, you’re probably better off enjoying it over ice with a squeeze of lime. Why miss out on all that flavor?