13 Essential Tips for Creating Tequila Cocktails: Dos and Don’ts

There was a time when I thought I didn’t like tequila. Of course, that was years before I became a mixologist and started crafting really tasty tequila drinks. Then I learned that with the right tequila and a flavorful mix of ingredients, this liquor can really shine. I wish I’d known all of that when I was in college and pouring cheap, harsh tequila from a shot glass straight down my throat. Thank goodness I know it now, or I would have missed out on some delicious cocktails. Since then, tequila has become one of my favorite liquors instead of the one I avoided at all costs. So, if you’re like college me and didn’t know what you were missing, I urge you to give tequila another chance. And if you already like tequila? These dos and don’ts for crafting tequila cocktails can help you take your game to the next level.

You have several options with tequila, each with its own flavor profile. Choosing the right one for each cocktail makes your drinks taste better. Every tequila is an agave spirit from Mexico produced in one of five Mexican states. Premium tequilas contain 100% blue agave, while mixto tequilas must contain at least 51% blue agave combined plus a sugar like molasses or corn syrup. For the best cocktails, I recommend a premium tequila instead of a mixto, which can be harsh and sweet.

Blanco (sometimes called white or silver) is colorless and aged for up to two months. It’s agave-forward and bright, making it perfect for citrusy or fruity tequila drinks like Palomas and margaritas. Aged up to 12 months, reposado is light gold with flavors of vanilla and spice. I like it in spicy margaritas or in warm tequila drinks like a tequila hot toddy. Añejo is aged in oak for one to three years and has smooth, spicy flavors along with caramel and toast. This is sipping tequila that’s good on its own or in an old-fashioned. Extra añejo, aged for more than three years, is delicious neat, on the rocks, or in a tequila-forward cocktail.

I completely understand the allure of a cheap bottle of tequila — I drank and served a ton of it in college because it was what I could afford. So, when I actually looked up from the bottom shelf and discovered affordable premium tequilas, it was a revelation. Not all affordable tequilas are harsh and awful. In fact, some are really good. For cocktails, a midrange premium tequila like Hornitos blanco or Espolòn blanco won’t cost an arm and a leg, but they’re 100% agave, they’re smooth, they have a light, clean flavor with the perfect amount of tequila funk, and they mix well in drinks. Plus, you’ll only pay about $20 for 750 mL — a price that’s well worth spending in order to take your cocktails to the next level. While they’re cheap, skip mixtos, which won’t do your cocktails justice. Make sure the tequila you’re mixing in your cocktails is 100% agave.

You only add a few dashes of bitters to any cocktail, but they can change your cocktail game. Contrary to what their name implies, they don’t make a drink bitter. Instead, they add flavors and aromas that enhance the taste and pull the drink together. Add a few dashes as you make the drink and shake it with other ingredients. Bitters flavors that work well with tequila drinks include mole, orange, lime, grapefruit, and habanero. Try a few dashes in a regular margarita to give it a little extra something or add a few dashes to an añejo tequila with a dash of agave syrup and a splash of water to make a killer tequila old-fashioned. You can also add aromatics by muddling herbs with a splash of simple syrup before you add ice and other ingredients to your cocktail. Try some mint, basil, or a citrus peel for an extra dash of flavor.

A few years ago, I was talking with a mixologist while I was on vacation to Victoria, British Columbia (talking to mixologists wherever I travel is a favorite pastime). We were discussing the sublime Don Julio 1942, and I mentioned that I couldn’t imagine that there was anything he could add to it that would make it more perfect than it already was. He proved me wrong. And while you don’t need to fork out upwards of $50 for a shot of a super premium añejo or extra añejo, an añejo in the $50 to $100 per 750 mL range like El Padrino’s or Juan Julio’s will make a tasty and nuanced old-fashioned.

To make a tequila old–fashioned, you’ll need:

• 1 teaspoon agave syrup
• 2 dashes mole bitters
• 2 ounces añejo or extra añejo tequila
• Splash of water
• Lime or orange peel

Instructions:

1. In a rocks glass, mix the agave syrup and bitters.
2. Add the tequila and water along with a king cube.
3. Stir to mix.
4. Run the lime or orange peel around the rim of the glass and then drop it in the drink as garnish.

Citrus and tequila are a match made in heaven. The funky agave flavors blend beautifully with the sour acidity of citrus — which is why the grapefruit Paloma and the lime margarita make such beautiful tequila cocktails. But when you’re working with citrus, you’ll also want to add a little bit of sweetness to balance out the sourness of the citrus and enhance the flavors in the tequila. A perfectly balanced citrus tequila drink is equal parts sweet and sour to two parts tequila — so for a margarita, which is a traditional sour, you would mix ¾ ounce each sweet (like simple syrup, honey syrup, agave, or orange liqueur) with ¾ ounce sour (lime juice) and 1½ ounces strong tequila.

I also love to make a fresh juice Paloma (the regular Paloma uses grapefruit soda) with ¾ ounce fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice and the same amount of agave syrup with 1½ ounces blanco tequila. Finish with a splash of club soda if you want it fizzy. Other sweet ingredients that’ll mix well with citrus include orange liqueur and prickly pear syrup.

Nonalcoholic spirits have come a long way, and today, there are so many to choose from. Many brands offer a nonalcoholic agave spirit that serves as the perfect stand-in for tequila in cocktails for those times when you want a tequila drink without the buzz — whether you’re sober-curious, want to save the calories that alcohol adds to a drink, feel like having a tequila sunrise for brunch, or just don’t like alcohol but love cocktails. You can use a nonalcoholic agave spirit as a direct 1:1 replacement for tequila in any cocktail (so if it calls for 1½ ounces of tequila, use 1½ ounces of agave spirit instead) to make it a mocktail. It’ll still have the agave flavor that makes tequila so special but none of the booze. If you’re making a margarita that calls for orange liqueur, to keep it alcohol-free, use an equal amount of agave syrup and a few dashes of orange bitters instead.

When I was in college, my experience of mezcal was a cheap, burning rotgut that had a worm in it. So imagine my surprise when I became a grown-up drinker and discovered that mezcal is, in fact, a delightful agave spirit with smoky and sweet flavors that is just as good as (if not often better than) many tequilas. Good mezcal is as far from my college experience as I could imagine, and it makes phenomenal cocktails.

Both tequila and mezcal are agave spirits, and they share some similarities. But tequila is 100% blue agave, while mezcal is any spirit made from the agave plant. So while all tequilas are mezcal, not all mezcals are tequila. But some mezcals are absolutely amazing and very high quality. Some mezcals taste almost exactly like tequila, while others are totally their own thing. And you can substitute mezcal in a tequila cocktail, or you can make a cocktail specifically designed to enhance the flavors of the mezcal — like this smoky mezcal negroni. When looking for a mezcal, stay away from the bottom shelf. You’ll find many good mezcals for cocktails in the $30 to $60 range.

Muddling herbs or fresh fruit is a great way to add flavors to tequila drinks. And tequila mixes well with so many fruits — whether they’re aromatic citrus peels, fresh berries, melon, or stone fruits. Some fruit and herb flavors I like to add to my tequila cocktails include lime (naturally!), orange, grapefruit, mango, papaya, ginger, mint, cilantro, and basil. Muddling is easy, too. 

You’ll need a muddler, which is a long stick that’s rounded on the end. You can muddle directly in the glass, a cocktail shaker, or mixing glass. Start with an empty glass or shaker and add a small amount of fruit (like two or three blackberries, one cherry, or similar amounts of other fruits) or herbs. Add half of your sweet element (syrup, liqueur, etc.), and use a long-handled muddler to gently smash the fruit two to three times to release the juices. Then, add your other cocktail ingredients and ice and shake to chill.

Margaritas are tequila’s most well-known mixed drink, but tequila is so much more than just a margarita or a Paloma. Other cocktails such as the Oaxacan old-fashioned and the juicy and spicy el diablo show that tequila is as versatile as every other spirit in mixed drinks. So while you can make margaritas in every flavor (because they are, after all, classics for a reason), you can also add it to hot drinks, craft delicious shots, mix it in a highball, or use it in place of vodka in a vodka cocktail.

It’s also popular in multi-spirit drinks like the classic Long Island iced tea and in light and refreshing drinks like ranch water. It’s such a versatile spirit that you can use a complex añejo or extra añejo tequila in place of whiskey in most whiskey, bourbon, or rye cocktails, and mezcal makes a good stand-in for Scotch and other smoky liquors in drinks like a penicillin cocktail or a rusty nail. It can even replace gin in complex cocktails like the Negroni. And don’t forget to add it to tiki drinks in place of rum, using añejo to replace dark rum or blanco to replace white rum. 

You can add heat with spicy bitters, infused syrups, muddled chilies. Muddling chilies works similarly to muddling fruit or herbs. You only need a small amount — like one small slice of jalapeño. Add a splash of your sweet ingredient and gently press it with a muddler two to three times to release its flavors and aromas before building the rest of your drink. Even mild chilies add a good amount of heat to any drink, so be aware of the spice level of the chilies and adjust the amount you use accordingly. A little goes a long way.

You can also infuse simple syrup by adding a few slices of chili peppers to a simple syrup recipe and allowing it to steep while the syrup is hot for 10 minutes. Strain out the chilies and use the simple syrup to add some heat. If you want to amp up those flavors, rim the glass with a combo of salt or sugar and some type of chili seasoning like Tajín so you get a hit of heat with every sip.

Simple syrup is always a great way to balance the flavor of a drink, but it’s not the only way. Honey syrup (2 parts honey to 1 part warm water) or hot honey syrup adds sweetness and spice. Agave simple syrup (2 parts agave syrup to 1 part warm water) tastes like it’s made to go with tequila. Simple syrups infused with flavors like cinnamon, jalapeño, cilantro, lime peel, or ginger add spice and depth to a drink. 

Using a 1:1 replacement of a syrup with a liqueur can also add flavor and complexity. Liqueurs that I like to use to add a little sweetness to tequila drinks include velvet falernum, orange liqueur, coffee liqueur, coconut liqueur, Ancho Reyes chili liqueur, and any fruit liqueur. Use the same ratio of equal parts of sweet and citrus to 2 parts of tequila, regardless of what you’re using for your sweet element.

While tequila is often associated with warm, summery weather, it can also taste just as good during the cooler months. I love a warm tequila drink — for example, añejo tequila tastes amazing in a hot buttered rum (or in this case, a hot-buttered tequila) and in a take on the Irish coffee, Mexican coffee. A tequila hot toddy, hot buttered tequila, coffee with a splash of tequila and simple syrup, or hot cider with tequila are all delicious cool-weather drinks that’ll warm you from the inside out! One of my favorite hot drink uses for tequila is the spicy tequila hot toddy, which replaces plain honey with a spicy hot honey and whiskey with tequila. 

To make a tequila hot toddy with a little bite:

• ¾ ounce hot honey
• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1½ ounces tequila
• Hot water

1. Warm a mug by filling it with hot water.
2. Empty out the hot water and combine all ingredients in the mug.
3. Stir to mix.

Tequila cocktails don’t need to be complicated. A two-ingredient tequila cocktail can be balanced and delicious, too. To make a two-ingredient cocktail, fill a highball glass with ice and then add 1½ ounces of tequila. Fill the rest of the glass with any of these mixers:

• Club soda
• Lemon-lime soda
• Grapefruit soda
• Orange juice
• Grapefruit juice
• Pineapple juice
• Lemonade
• Ginger beer
• Ginger ale
• Cola
• Iced coffee
• Iced tea
• Tomato juice
• Beer
• Flavored seltzers like lemon, lime, grapefruit, coconut, pineapple, or orange

To make your tequila drinks even better, don’t be afraid to use any of the other techniques we’ve already discussed. Muddle some fruit, chili peppers, or herbs with a dash of simple syrup in your glass before you add your tequila, ice, and mixer. Add a few dashes of bitters to your two-ingredient cocktail to give it some pop. Stir in a dash of a sweet liqueur or simple syrup until it’s the perfect amount of sweetness for you. Squeeze in some citrus. By mixing it up, you can craft your own tequila cocktails that have all the flavors you love.