**UPDATE: A new, and even better (in our opinion) sangrita recipe has been discovered. We even made a video of us following the recipe!

We’ve already mentioned sangrita in previous posts, but in this one I’d like to share one sangrita recipe that tastes pretty good.

But first, a few points about sangrita…

Sangrita, tequila's best friend.

Sangrita, tequila's best friend.

– It’s difficult to find sangrita in a bar.

– Most places that say they have it think you are saying “sangria,” and they don’t really have it.

– If a tequila bar doesn’t have sangrita behind the bar, then it’s not a *real* tequila bar.

– It is rarely on the menu – you just have to ask for it.

– When a white boy like me asks for it, I sometimes get a smile and a nod from the bartender, and I feel like a member of an exclusive authentic tequila drinker club who just uttered the secret password that lets him know that I’m not to be messed with.

– It comes in various recipes, and since it is almost always made right there in the bar, you never know what you’re going to get.

– Some of the best sangrita we’ve ever tasted was at the San Angel Inn, an amazing restaurant in Mexico City.

– Some of the worst sangrita we’ve ever had was served to us in a bar in Tlaquepaque, believe it or not. It came from a bottle made in some mass-produced factory and it looked like sugar water with red food coloring, and it tasted like it. We could tell it was not to be touched just by looking at it. I, of course, tried it anyway, and it was truly nasty.

– Bartenders take pride in their sangrita mixes, and every one seems to think they’ve got the best. Of course this is not true, but when you are sitting in front of a proud bartender who is watching you drink it, you should say something nice about it even if it tastes bad. Get him/her mad and he/she may cut you off.

– We always ask for it, but seldom get it.

– Sangrita should be spicy, but not TOO spicy. Remember to preserve a few taste buds for the tequila. If it is sweet (some are, some aren’t), it should be slightly sweet. If you want sweet, there’s always Coke or Pepsi. :-)

– Places in San Francisco that have sangrita: Tres Agaves, Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant, Cava 22, Tropisueño, and Colibri.

Of all of these, we felt that Amado, the bartender at Cava 22, makes the best.

He gave us his recipe, and we went right home and whipped up a batch.

We made 32 ounces of sangrita using Amado’s recipe as a guide.

Mix the following things together:

16 ounces tomato juice
16 ounces Clamato (plain)
3 tablespoons of lime juice
2 tablespoons of orange juice
1 pinch of sugar
1 teaspoon of Tabasco
1/3 teaspoon of horseradish
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all of those ingredients together, then put it in the refrigerator for 2 days. Yes, two days!

Remember, there is no one perfect recipe. As we continue our worldwide tequila tasting tour we will continue to request sangrita, and when we find a good batch we will try to wrestle the recipe out of the bartender.

If we succeed, we’ll share it with you.

– Grover

**UPDATE: A new, and even better (in our opinion) sangrita recipe has been discovered. We even made a video of us following the recipe!