El Manhattan Featuring Tapatio Anejo

When the good people at Charbay sent me some of their R5 Whiskey to sample, they also sent me some testers of Tequila Tapatio, Anejo, Blanco and Reposado. &nbsp. Tequila Tapatio is 100% blue agave, and distilled by Master Distiller, Carlos Camarena for La Altena. The Anejo is aged for 18 months in used Jim Bean American Oak Barrels.

Tequila Tapatio is a well known and beloved tequila brand and has been available only in Mexico. "It's the 75 year old icon of Tequila," says Eric Johnson , co-owner/ respected bartender of San Francisco's Bar Agricole. A frequent Tequila seeker, he's been waiting for years to pour it here in the U.S. His wait is now over; Charbay recently began importing this brand into the United States.

Carlos Camarena 's La Altena Family Distillery distills its Tequila only from estate grown blue agave plants. According to Charbay's press release, when Charbay's father and son team decided to distill their own Charbay Tequila, the Camarenas invited the distillers to distill with them. The two families shared their distilling methods. The friendship expanded into Charbay becoming the exclusive USA Importer of the Tequila Tapatio brand.

On Friday night I thought I would put the Tequila Tapatio, Anejo to the test with the El Manhattan recipe from the PDT Cocktail Book. The Anejo is a very smooth tequila, with cocoa, wood, cinnamon and clove on the palate. It made for one great cocktail.

El Manhattan

2 oz Tequila Tapatio Anejo
1oz Punt e Mes
Dash Orange Bitters

Shake, serve up in a coupe; garnish with a burnt orange peel.

Diez de Mayo - Perfect Day For a Margarita

Cinco de Mayo has come and gone, but I am having a craving for the margarita cocktail artisan Rhino made for me last week at the Phoenix in Beverly Hills.  This recipe happens to be one of my all time favorites.

2oz. Reposado tequila
.5 oz fresh lime juice
.5 oz grapefruit juice
two jalapeno slices
three cucumber slices
fresh micro cilantro

Combine all ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker. Shake.  Double strain over ice.

Friday Night R5 Manhattan

The good people at Charbey were kind enough to send me a sample of their R5 aged whiskey, and Friday night was as good a time as any to give it a whirl.  What's R5 Whiskey you ask.  As you all know, whiskey is a distilled alcohol made from fermented grain mash, such as malted barley, rye, wheat, corn, etc.  R5 Whiskey is distilled from Racer 5 beer right out of the bottle.  I am a big fan of this hoppy IPA, and in my opinion using this as the base for a whiskey is pure genius.

I decided to take the little tester of R5 and give it a spin in a Manhattan.  The malty and hoppy nature of Racer 5 carried through, giving the whiskey a unique and enjoyable flavor profile.  The F5 Whiskey will be one I add to my collection.

The R5 Manhattan 
2 oz R5 Whiskey
1 oz Antica sweet vermouth
Dash of Angostura bitters
Shaken over ice and served up; skip the cherry