Going into this project, I expected to expand my knowledge in the beverage industry, develop (to some degree) as a cook, learn a ton of new techniques, and taste some awesome creations. So far, I have not been disappointed. What Angie and I never expected to gain from this project, at least as quickly as we have, is the network of people we’ve become a part of who are passionate about the beverage industry like we are. We actually made a conscious decision to put almost zero of our energy and resources towards advertising this blog. A Facebook page, Instagram, and a website was all we decided we’d put together so that we could share our misadventures with our family and friends.
However, we somehow ended up on the cocktail world radar almost instantly. At the turn of this new year, I had been working on creating our blog site…and that’s when it happened. Our biggest fear and excitement all at once. January 1st, 2019, Allen Hemberger, author of the Aviary Cocktail Book, started following us on Instagram. Angie and I were shocked. Our website wasn’t up and we hadn’t even made a post yet.
Since that fateful day, we have been embraced by cocktail enthusiasts from not only all around the U.S., but also from other countries. We have made connections with a few past and present Aviary employees, received feedback from Allen, joined social media groups, and met other incredible mixologists around the world. One fellow who found us, Matt, started a group chat on Instagram of Aviary cocktail makers from around the world to discuss the challenges, successes, and journey of making these incredible and difficult cocktails at home. Now we all can act as resources to assist each other in creative solutions, or goofy, like-minded company.
Inspired by our growing network, Angie and I wanted to get right back to the book after the Sweet Potato. This was the quickest turn around we’ve made so far from one recipe to another, as I believe only three or four days passed from posting the Sweet Potato to making our next, delicious cocktail. Enter: Margarita.
This cocktail might just be the easiest offering from our Big, Beautiful Book. It calls for the Tequila Fortaleza (can you tell we are knocking out all of the drinks that share this tequila?), Cointreau, lime juice, agave syrup, and celery bitters served over Fresno chili ice. All you really need to pull this off is a juicer and a freezer.
The bitters was surprisingly difficult to acquire. Most states don’t regulate bitters according to their alcohol laws because bitters, though alcoholic, are classified as non-potable. It can usually be shipped from anyone to anyone, like buying food or vinegar. However, to avoid any risks, most businesses that sell alcohol simply will not ship to certain states due to strict legal regulations (regardless of the content they are shipping). Eventually, we found someone who would send us the bitters we needed.
Next, we needed to make the Fresno chili ice. We bought some Fresno chilies from the grocery store–our cashier couldn’t find a button for it, so she sold it to us as green chilies which were a dollar cheaper and said it was fine. She was very nice. We set up our juicer and got prepped for juicing when we realized a minor uncertainty with the recipe. The recipe states “5 Fresno chilies, stems removed. Extract Fresno juice with juicer.” The book didn’t address whether we were supposed to juice the chilies with or without the seeds. We asked our group of aforementioned cocktail friends; one person said they juiced with the seeds, one said they juiced without. I was feeling confident after saving a whole dollar at the grocery store, so I juiced them with the seeds hoping it would be spicier.
To make the ice, you mix 50g of Fresno juice with 800g of water, then freeze it. I see why that much dilution is necessary. I boldly sipped some of the undiluted Fresno juice. I have no regrets. I also have no taste buds anymore. It was delicious while it lasted.
The agave syrup was quick and easy–just dilute some thick, store-bought agave syrup with some water. All that was left for us to do was wait for the ice to freeze and my taste buds to grow back, so we decided to make the cocktail the next day.
The time was upon us to finish crossing the 10% complete benchmark of our blog. After an awesome Goodwill run for a few new photogenic glasses, Angie prepped her photo booth while I prepped our first batch. Oddly enough, the color of our ice did not match the color of the photo in the book. We wonder if the seeds had something to do with the end result. The book displays a magnificent and brilliantly pink-iced Margarita, almost as if it is served with cubes of watermelon; on the other hand, our Margarita came out orange.
Despite the difference in color, this cocktail was awesome. The Margarita is soft, bright, rich, and flavorful. Time only compliments the drink as the Fresno juice slowly creeps into the cocktail. Angie said she loved the taste of something cold and spicy. Now that I think about it, it is poetic to think that this Fresno ice is simultaneously heating up and cooling down the drink with the passage of time. I really can’t wait to see where this project takes us next.
