If you’re a spirits fan and looking for unique bottles to share with friends, here are two to make any summer party a true fiesta.
The first is Milagro Tequila. If you hear the word Tequila and think turpentine, then it’s a safe bet that you haven’t had the well-made and carefully produced stuff (it’s like drinking badly made wine and wondering why your molars zing after a few sips).
Agave, the Noble Plant
At the Tequilera Cielito Lindo in Jalisco, Mexico, where the volcanic-rich soil is a terra cotta red, Milagro tequila is produced using 100 percent estate grown blue agave. Agave by the way means “Noble,” a fitting translation for this beautiful plant. The tequila story begins eight to twelve years after the agave is planted. That’s when the harvesters, or the “Jimador” chops the leaves of the plant away, revealing the heart (or piña in Spanish) of the agave. A clay fired oven (made using the same volcanic soil the plant is grown in), roasts the piña until the aguamiel (or Honey water) is released. The piña is chopped and crushed to release the aguamiel and then fermented.
It’s triple distilled for extra smoothness, adding to this brand’s signature flavour and then aged. The premium line includes the Silver (or Blanco- which means white in Spanish- these are fresh from the still), Reposado (or rested) and Añejo (or aged) varieties. The two latter kinds are oak-aged for six and eighteen months respectively. Milagro also recently launched the Select Barrel Reserve line- fermented in French oak barrels. There’s a Silver, a Reposado that has rested for ten months in the French barrels, and an Añejo that’s taken three years to come to maturation. Milagro’s Select Barrel Reserve Reposado was recently awarded the coveted Double Gold Medal for 2009 at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
A Few Food Pairing Suggestions from Milagro Tequila:
- Milagro Reposado pairs well with Filet Mignon
- The Milagro Silver pairs with a lamb chop, mashed potatoes and a sprig of rosemary
- The Milagro Añejo can be enjoyed with shrimp with a spicy dip
For Milagro Tequila recipes, click here.
From Mexico to Iceland
If Vodka is much more your speed, Food Trends suggests sampling Reyka Vodka, the only vodka to be distilled in Iceland using Geothermal Energy. The spring water used in making Reyka Vodka is sourced from the Grábrók Spring (located in a 4,000 year old lava field surrounding the distillery). Naturally low in minerals, this spring water is so pure that it doesn’t require any treatment before blending with the spirit.
The story behind the vodka goes something like this: scientists testing the water at the distillery thought that their instruments were broken when their equipment did not register any water impurity rating. Testing it with new equipment yielded the same results.
The Vodka Lover's Review
They say that Reyka is filtered through the area’s Lava Rock – a natural and effective filtration system that further enhances the vodka’s purity. The result, “Very pleasant. Once chilled properly, Reyka was smooth, odourless and had no burn – the vodka version of after-taste, like you’d get in wine,” says vodka enthusiast Ed Demirci. Maybe Ed’s review is because Reyka contains no sugar, glycerol or other “rounding agents” used in many vodkas on the market. Made of equal parts barley and wheat- this crisp, Icelandic vodka is perfect for any celebration.
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