What to mix with tequila

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Tequila is made from one plant, the blue Weber agave. By Mexican law it can only be made in 181 municipalities across five states: Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Nayarit and Tamaulipas.

Look for 100% agave on the label. That bottle is made only from blue agave sugars. One that just says tequila needs at least 51% of its sugars from blue agave, and the rest can come from other sugars.

Farmers cut the agave's heart, the piña, when the plant is ready. It's cooked, shredded to free the juice, fermented with yeast and distilled. From field to bottle can take five to eight years.

Blanco (or silver) goes from the still to the bottle with less than two months in oak, if any. It's bright and peppery: the one for a Margarita or a Paloma.

Reposado rests at least two months in oak. It's softer and rounder, and good in a drink with bigger flavours.

Añejo spends at least a year in oak barrels of 600 litres or less, and extra añejo at least three. These are for sipping.

A good blanco tastes of cooked agave, sweet and a little earthy, with citrus, black pepper and green herbs. Time in oak softens that edge and brings vanilla and caramel. In a good bottle the agave still comes through.

Margarita. Tequila, lime and orange liqueur. Sour, sweet and strong at once, and a salt rim sharpens the lime.

Paloma. Grapefruit soda and lime. Grapefruit's bitter edge suits agave.

Tommy's Margarita. Agave syrup in place of orange liqueur, so the tequila tastes more like itself.

Tequila Sunrise. Orange juice with grenadine sinking to the bottom. Sweet, fruity and pretty in the glass.

Batanga. Tequila, lime and cola in a salted glass. Simple, and better than it sounds.

El Diablo. Ginger beer, lime and a splash of crème de cassis. Spicy, tart and dark red.

Ranch Water. Tequila, plenty of lime and sparkling water. Dry and cold, for a hot afternoon.

Bloody Maria. A Bloody Mary with tequila. Agave stands up to tomato and spice better than vodka does.

Most spirits can be made from many things, almost anywhere. Tequila comes from one plant grown in one part of Mexico, and that plant takes years to be ready. That's why it tastes like nothing else.