Tequila!

Tequila has inspired many great things... The 1958 one-hit-wonder by The Champs, which I will always fondly remember as the song Pee-Wee Herman danced to in hopes of saving himself from bikers in the movie Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (and I don't want to ruin the ending, but Pee-Wee rocked the dance). I'm sure it may have inspired quite a few people to get up in a Karaoke bar to sing that same song (which by the way, is an excellent pick for a reluctant signer since the only word in the song is "tequila", unless you sing dadada-da-da's to the trumpet like I do, and well, then, you're probably not so reluctant after all). But I digress.

Tequila is the word of the day here around the office though, which I must say is a bit unusual for a Thursday afternoon. It started when I finally logged on to my Twitter account, after a long outage of the site that served to point out that I am indeed starting to develop a bit of a dependence on tweeting. I couldn't help but wish I was in Mexico when I read Karisma Hotels' tweet about the Agavero Tequila Lounge at their Azul Beach Hotel. Not only does this bar offer 30 different types of tequila, but the bar top is frozen. Now how cool is that?

The Agavero Tequila Lounge at the Azul Beach Hotel, featuring a frozen bar top

Karisma Hotels offers up these tips to sip tequila like a pro:

The traditional way is to use a tall, narrow shot glass called caballito (little horse or pony). The caballito, with its narrow base and wider mouth, is said to be modeled after the original bull’s horn, from which tequila was drunk. The bottom was so it could rest on a table. It’s a perfect size and shape. Sip it so you appreciate the full bouquet and body, then eschew the lime and the salt, or drink a chaser of Sangrita, a popular non alcoholic and spicy drink made of orange and tomato juices, and keep sipping!

Since tequila wasn't on the menu for me this afternoon, I settled for the next best thing - coffee (well, in my world anyways!). But it's not really a coffee break unless you poke your head into someone's office for a quick chat. So I stopped by our editor's desk to take a peek at what is coming up in the Fall 2009 issue of Ensemble Vacations magazine. I sooooo love sneak previews! And I really hate people who don't share, so I'll let you in on one of the article topics. You guessed it - tequila! Turns out that there is quite a bit to know, and thanks to my nosiness today, I'm starting to be a bit of a connoisseur now. But I think I still need a taste test to make it official. Perhaps a little trip to Mexico is in order? And I know just the song to load on my iPod for the flight.