This recipe was featured as part of our story on Charro Negro
60ml Olmeca Los Altos 100 per cent agave tequila (blanco or reposado)
20ml Lime juice
90ml Cola
Splash of soda water (optional)
Prepare a chilled collins glass by moistening the rim with a lime wedge and dipping in good quality salt. Shake off excess salt; less is more here.
Build the remaining ingredients over ice and briefly stir. Garnish with a lime wheel. Don Javier maintains the secret flavour comes from stirring with a bar knife also used to prepare guacamole or similar snacks. Some like to cut the sweetness with a dash of soda water, though I find a minimalist pour of cola renders this unnecessary. Wet ice, in the style of your average Mexican dive bar, also helps.
Any quality tequila works, though the woody notes of reposado are perfect. Think of it as how aged rum brings the Cuba Libre up a notch. A good reposado introduces vegetal notes reminiscent of a Mexican take on Cynar. Purists should use an old-style cola sweetened with cane sugar rather than corn syrup. Whatever you go with though, the key is not to drown the tequila.
