This question doesn’t present itself too often, as I don’t regularly find myself in bars or nightclubs. But when it does, I’m now decisively ready with, “I’ll have my usual.”
This past September, I found myself on an all-white cocktail birthday cruise with my dear friend, Kylie.
What cocktail does one enjoy in such an elegant, fun setting? As I approached the bartender for the first time, one particular, life-of-the-party guest shouted out to me, “Girl, what cha drinkin’!?” (We met up on the dance floor quite a few times later that evening.) Hum… my usual rum and diet? A margarita? The typical girlie cosmopolitan every other female on the boat was holding? “I’m not sure… any suggestions?” (It was obvious she did and considering I’m not much of a drinker, I decided to trust my new stranger friend.) She ordered for me what she’d been sipping on all evening, which turns out to be my new favorite cocktail to date, Tequila and Ginger.
Some call it the Tequila Ginger Snap, made with two parts ginger ale, one part tequila.
Others refer to it as the Tequila Slammer, which is typically made with equal parts tequila and carbonated beverage (7 Up, ginger ale, Mountain Dew etc.) and is often served as a shot.
Since then, I’ve ordered similar variations and did a little in-home experimentation with ingredients. I prefer two parts ginger ale to one part tequila and a splash of lime juice over rocks. While more upscale tequila makes the drink smoother, I thoroughly enjoyed my own concoction with what my pantry held… José Cuervo. In addition, while typical ginger ale tastes great, if I’m going to mix my own cocktails, I’ll use Hansen’s Ginger Ale because there is less sugar, no corn syrup and no calories. Also, in a blind taste test, it beat out the others, hands-down.
