DC Drinks

Reviews, rantlets and ribald on all things alcoholic.

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Lime: The Bitch Sister That Won't Put Out

Answer this, margarita purists: if margarita premix is so evil, why is the process of squeezing enough limes for a decent-sized party so f'n hard?

On the invite for my last cocktail party I shunned premix like any good cocktail snob. Just like a "vodka martini" isn't a real Martini, a real margarita is not authentic unless freshly squeezed lime juice is the base. A no-brainer, right? But try doing it.

First off, I lack a proper electric juicer, so I'm stuck doing it by hand. And after the 8th lime squeezed, your arms feel wrenched and you want to give up. The taboo thought enters your head: maybe I should've just bought premix. NO, god dammit. You know fresh is better; it's axiomatic. So you slog on ...

At lime number 25, you look into your pitcher and realize there's only enough juice for fewer than three glasses. Christ. At some point you need help. In fact, it's a three person job if you're wanting more margaritas than for just you and your S.O.

You may not know it, but limes are small and dry. There's not much juice in them compared to lemons, and their innards are like green desert clay. A lemon is luscious---covered in thick, oily skin and full of wet fruit that keeps on giving. You only need a few lemons to get most cocktail jobs done. But the lime is the lemon's bitch sister that won't put out.

How god damn hard is it to make quality margarita premix? DC Drinks demands that the public should be able to obtain it. Just remember, there was once a time when we accepted coffee from a can as something drinkable.

Change is in the air ...

24 Comments:

At 1:39 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've decided I'm going to make margaritas like caipirinhas in the future--better flavor yield muddling one lime than squeezing three.

When we getting the band back together?

 
At 3:13 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree. It's so painful to juice a hundred limes (no electric juicer here either). Plus, it's expensive. Personally, I've given up and just buy handles of Jose Cuervo margarita mix. It's still better than running out of lime juice, which happens far too frequently at parties.

 
At 4:24 AM, Blogger Isaac Washington said...

For the record, there is more flavor is in the peel than juice. So Margaritas a la Caipirihas is a great idea.

 
At 5:47 AM, Blogger Brent Russell said...

Lonnie,

Can't you buy lime juice in a glass bottle? Perhaps by the pint? Being a bit inebriated at the moment, I can't recall seeing it at my grocer's, but I know one can buy lemon juice in that manner. It's not a far strech to think lime juice would reside in a similar fashion. It seems like that would be a good middle ground.

Incidentally, I've found the most delectable martini cocktail garnir - pitted olives stuffed with onions - the best of both worlds. I won't accept anything else (at least until the jar is empty).

http://in-medias-res.blog-city.com/

 
At 12:31 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

To get the most juice out of fruit, roll the limes on a hard surface, and really push into them.

 
At 12:45 PM, Blogger Wicketywack said...

ulty4life,

That type of bottled lime juice lacks the flavor of fresh-squeezed.

George,

Your technique still proves that limes are the bitch sister that won't put out. But thanks anyway.

 
At 9:24 PM, Blogger MH said...

Just get a lime reamer - they're four dollars for crying out loud, and make it a snap. Also if you buy better limes you'll get more juice from them...

 
At 2:04 AM, Blogger Washington Cube said...

Having just used my wood reamer tool on limes last night, I can say that's the way to go.

 
At 2:10 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Look for limes that have thinner skins and fewer bumps. Also, the ones that are looking a little yellow or brown will give you more juice. I usually get between 1 and 2oz of juice out of a single lime.

And as others said, roll those limes and use a reamer-type tool.

 
At 2:44 PM, Blogger red storm said...

Mmmm fresh lime margaritas. I have a solution at least for MY party margarita needs - Lonnie brings the Margaritas! (They're worth it kiddo - very tasty!)

 
At 7:03 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It helps if you place them in the a microwave for a few seconds.

 
At 5:00 PM, Blogger Shawn said...

Screw it, I agree with you. Even with a reamer it's not worth it the friggin' effort. Beside, if you're making them right, you don't need that much pre-mix anyway, and they all taste the same after the first one. - Enjoying reading your blogs... thanks. -S

 
At 3:51 PM, Blogger Pyewacket said...

I use the juicer attachment on my tiny (1 pint) food processor, which was very cheap. That's pretty much all I use it for, lime juice and pesto. Saves a lot of work. But lime juice freezes pretty well; you would think someone would sell it that way.

 
At 10:42 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree with all the above comments. I also don't cut my limes in half, I just take a little bit off the end and juice one whole lime at a time. And believe, at my bar we're pre-juicing over two gallons every day!

 
At 4:55 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Skip the pre-mix and all the work to squeeze limes and head to the frozen juice section for some limeade. One can of limeade, five cans of water, 2 to 2 1/2 cans of tequila, 1/2 can of cointreau and various combinations of juice makes a party pleasing margarita with no effort

 
At 3:52 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

If you can find it - Santa Cruz Lime Juice works well when you need bulk juice. It's actually the only thing I have found that comes close. You can generally find it in Whole Foods and other such stores.

http://www.scojuice.com/products/100_citrus

 
At 2:04 AM, Anonymous high cholesterol control said...

Thanks for another unbelievable blog. The place else could anyone get that form of data written in such an ideal way? I have a presentation that I am simply now working on, and I've been on the look out for such information.

 
At 2:04 AM, Anonymous constipation remedy said...

Thanks for another unbelievable blog. The place else could anyone get that form of data written in such an ideal way? I have a presentation that I am simply now working on, and I've been on the look out for such information.

 
At 2:04 AM, Anonymous excessive underarm sweating said...

This actually is indeed Awesome experience having writing and lots of due to yahoo search engine choose up me on here. I loved studying your content material and added to the guide marks. The ideas you used to place up was clearly understandable. My husband additionally appreciated after reading this post. Let me undergo for more earlier.

 
At 2:05 AM, Anonymous profuse sweating treatment said...

Can I simply speak what a elimination to find famous person who actually is acquainted with what theyre talking relating to on the web. You absolutely recognize the right way to carry an matter to mild and build it significant. More folks have to read this plus understand this side of the narrative. I cant consider youre not more standard because you positively have the gift.

 
At 2:05 AM, Anonymous genital wart removal said...

I’ve been browsing on-line rather more than three hours as of late, however I don’t ever discovered any interesting posting like your site. It’s fairly value sufficient for me. For my part, if most of website house owners and people produced great content material as you do, the net will likely be a lot far more useful than ever before.

 
At 2:05 AM, Anonymous acid reflux natural remedy said...

Pleasantly, the posting is actually the fresh area of interest for this registry associated issue. I harmonize together with your conclusions and will eagerly look forward to your incoming updates. Simply say gives thanks will not enough, on your lucidity in your posting. I’ll instantly grab your rss feed to keep abreast of all updates.

 
At 11:31 AM, Anonymous how to stimulate hair growth said...

Rattling superb info can be found on weblog .

 
At 7:14 AM, Anonymous tomatoes said...

This is a great rainpoint smart irrigation timer. We recently built a green house and frequently travel. This is very handy. I am able to see that things get watered easily.
Set up was pretty easy. Just follow the quick guide instructions and you’ll be up and running in a few minutes. You may need to adjust your wifi to 2.4Ghz setting. I didn’t find it too difficult. The indoor hub is wonderful because it allows you to still use your plug. Unlike competitors that block your plug. I’m looking forward to spring as I’ll be purchasing more timers for the front yard. The hub will support 4 timers!!! Now I can travel and not worry about returning to dead grass and losing all my flowers.
https://www.rainpointonline.com/

 

Post a Comment

<< Home