This is a variation on the margarita that I posted last week. This one utilizes, instead of Cointreau as a sweetener, agave nectar as sweetener. Though, some use agave nectar as well as orange liqueur in a normal margarita to keep it from being too tart and sour. This cocktail is probably a bit easier than the regular Margarita for those who are not very keen on dry boozy cocktails. This one is easier to adjust the strength and the balance of flavours, including the sweetness. Like I stressed last week with the tequila in the Margarita should be 100 % agave, the same is true for this one as well. A good tequila is ALWAYS the secret ingredient in any good tequila cocktail. The same rule goes for the lime juice, always use freshly squeezed lime juice.

My Recipe:

• 2 oz (6 cl) Tequila
• 1 oz (3 cl) Lime Juice
• 0.5 oz (1.5 cl) Agave Nectar

Pour the ingredients in a shaker and add ice. Shake and strain into an ice filled Old Fashioned glass, there is no need to garnish this one.

The Sour category of cocktails

This cocktail I have chosen to present this week is very typical for the classic sour. The general idea of the sour cocktail is that is should consist of a strong ingredient, a sour ingredient as well as a sweetener, hence I have used this word above. There is a general recipe is 2 parts strong, 1 part sweet and 1 part sour. This will not be true for all cocktails, but when you are unsure it is a good starting point. Another that also generally yields a good result is the 8:3:3 ratio, usually 2 oz strong and 0.75 oz of both sweet and sour.

The cocktail made for this post does not follow this rule, that is because this ratio 2:1:1 is made for diluted syrups and using agave nectar you are using a much sweeter sweetener. If that is the case, you will in most cases need to adjust the recipe you are using and reduce the amount of sweetener you are using. That is also the point of knowing what a sour is, by having one general recipe you can make many different cocktails that turn out quite good every time. Knowing what sour ingredients, lemons or limes, and sweeteners, simple syrup or agave nectar or something else, goes well together with the spirit of choice your skills increase immensely.

The options do not end with non-alcoholic sweeteners. Liqueurs may also be used, though this changes the alcohol balance a bit, but it still works. Like posted last week, the margarita may be called a sour, as well as the white lady, the last word, and many more I have posted on Instagram. If you then decide to include soda water, in different amounts, you can turn the sour into a fizz or a Collins.

For me, this is generally the category of drinks I would recommend those not used to cocktails, they are easy to drink, once you find one you like, swapping out different ingredients is easy and very complex cocktails do also exist. This, then, is a good place to start and the journey into cocktails may start with that one sour you like and make changes to.