The Bell – Fortaleza Still Strength Tequila
It is not so easy to find a good high-quality tequila here in Germany. Luckily, I got my hands on a bottle of Fortaleza Still Strength Tequila. This also seemed like the perfect base spirit for a White Agavoni recipe I had written down a long time ago.
The Fortaleza Blanco Still Strength uses agaves from the Tequila valley. The piñas are cooked in stone ovens and crushed using a traditional Tahona. After fermentation in open wooden vats, distillation takes place in copper pot stills. Finally, the tequila is bottled without further dilution, giving it an ABV of 46 %.
Agave lover
This Blanco tequila does not hide its flavours. Instead, you are greeted by intense fresh agaves. Next, I instantly notice a lot of minerals. You can taste a combination of wet clay and worm salt. Towards the end of the sip lime and earthy notes emerge, too. In the aftertaste, the slightest hint of menthol shines through.
White Agavoni
For the White Negroni variation with tequila, I decided to swap out the gentian liqueur for some Italicus. Next, I threw in a splash of gentian-apple eau de vie from Spiritus Rex. Last but not least, I added a few drops of saline solution and kept the original Kina Lillet.
2 Bsp. Spiritus Rex Martini Gentiana Eau de Vie
2,25 cl Italicus
3 cl Cocchi Americano
Stir – strain – chilled Old-Fashioned glass over ice cubes;
Garnish: Lime Twist;
Song: Villagers – The Bell;
Through the use of Italicus and tequila, ‘The Bell’ comes off less intense than your usual White Negroni. Yet, the gentian eau de vie brings back some earthy notes. The bergamot flavour of the liqueur works very well with the tequila as well as the aperitif wine. Somewhere in the back, the mineral notes and the salt result in a deeper . All in all, this is a tasty use of a great tequila!
