Republic Tequila Dinner at Chavez Restaurant

Let's talk about tequila.  Not taking shots of it, but enjoying the flavor and body nuances.  I was invited to a tequila dinner hosted by Republic Tequila at Chavez Restaurant.  Their product, along with the others out there are evidence of a changing approach to this lively spirit.  It isn't just for mixing anymore (though that is perfectly acceptable). It is can also be enjoyed by itself, to really get to the essence of the tequila.

Republic tequila is sold in their iconic bottles on Texas shelves.  They may come in other types of bottles in other areas of the country.

As with any other adult beverages, tequila is a complex character.  Variations by yeast used and aging process are just two variables that give different types of tequila its flavor.

Tequilas are generally split into lowland and highland tequilas, which indicates the regions.  Republic Tequila is a lowland tequila, garnering its flavor profile from the minerally volanic rocks found in the terrorr.  We had the Republic Plata (same thing as a blanco or silver) with these nibble-sized fried oyster tacos with habanero sauce.

I just wanted to say that the green bean sides were really delicious.  I'd get these again.

Here's the quail that was marinated in tequila with a tequila mole sauce.  Each dish was paired with a cocktail, but I enjoyed sipping the tequilas first with the food.  Sipping the tequila as opposed to having it with cocktails let the tequila flavors shine through more spectacularly without being blended with with the cocktail flavors.  Also, if you tried cooking poultry in tequila, it is delicious!  If making a chicken breast, make sure to pound it flat with a mallet first, and then brown until crispy after you have marinated it.  The flavors of tequila and other types of spirits give an additional dimension to food that is difficult to replicate.

We were also served three very delicious cocktails made with Republic Tequila.  The sage blossom with reposado was my favorite, and quite possible the best one I've had in a while.  It had earthy notes from the herbacious sage.  I'd probably get lost in that one.

It is 1.5 oz Republic Reposado, 1.5 oz pomegranate-sage shrub, and .5 oz lemon juice.  The shrub recipe was 1 part apple cider vinegar, 2 parts POM pomegranate juice, and 3 parts sage simple syrup (1 part sugar 1 part hot water, and 1 handful spanked sage allowed to steep overnight).    Shake and serve in a highball on the rocks garnished with spanked sage leaf.