The Ultimate Margarita Recipe: La Doña

To learn more, read "Marg and In Charge" in our National edition.

Recipe adapted from Jeret Peña, The Brooklynite, San Antonio, TX

La Doña
5 (28 ratings)
Up your margarita game with this update on the classic from Jeret Peña of San Antonio's The Brooklynite.
Prep Time
15
minutes
Cook Time
0
minutes
Servings
1
cocktail
Total time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
  • Árbol chile tincture
  • 20 árbol chiles
  • 1¾ cup grain alcohol (such as Everclear)
  • Salt essence
  • 1 cup water, at room temperature
  • ½ cup salt
  • ⅓ cup vodka
  • Cocktail
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ cup hot water
  • Ice
  • 1½ ounces tequila blanco, preferably Tapatio
  • ¾ ounce Key lime juice
  • ½ ounce Cointreau
  • Salt essence
  • Árbol chile tincture
Directions
  1. For the árbol chile tincture: In a small container with a tight-fitting lid, combine the chiles and the grain alcohol. Cover and set aside at room temperature for 2 weeks, shaking vigorously every day for 5 to 10 seconds. (The tincture will keep indefinitely.) 2. For the salt essence: In a small bowl, whisk together the water and salt until dissolved. Strain through a small sieve over a small bowl. Add the vodka and transfer to an atomizer; set aside.
  2. For the cocktail: In a small bowl, whisk together the honey and hot water until dissolved. Set aside to let cool. (This yields about ½ cup honey syrup.) 4. Spray 3 spritzes of the salt essence into a chilled coupe glass. In an ice-filled cocktail shaker, combine the tequila, Key lime juice, Cointreau and ¼ ounce of the honey syrup. Shake vigorously and strain the contents into the glass. Add 2 to 3 drops of the árbol chile tincture on top. Serve immediately.
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