How To Choose The Best Tequila For Boozy Popsicles That Actually Taste Good

If you regularly break out popsicle molds for a fun alternative to breakfast parfaits, you may be ready to prepare a whole new variety of frozen treats. More specifically, if you're a margarita lover, frozen spears of tequila, citrus juice, and agave nectar are sure to please your palate. 

To create tasty popsicles with the right combination of flavors, you need to choose the right tequila for the job. For some advice on the subject, Chowhound sat down for an exclusive chat with a handful of industry experts, including Chef Derek Piva from Tu Tu' Tun Lodge, Seungcheol Baek from Jeong Yuk Jeom, Chris Furtado, the area manager Infinium Spirits (which distributes Tequila Corralejo), and Jun, the head bartender at KEI NYC. When it comes to the best tequila for boozy popsicles, every expert recommended one spirit in particular. "Blanco tequila all day. It gives you those nice agave characteristics without overshadowing the other ingredients while still giving out that nice bright, crisp flavor profile," Jun said.

Since blanco tequila is rarely aged longer than two months, this variety has an unmuddled, clear taste that serves as an ideal spirit for spiked popsicles. While many aged tequilas have underlying notes of caramel or vanilla, blanco tequila has a mild and refreshing bite. "The cleanness of a blanco tequila would provide an ideal base to add flavors from juices," Furtado said. Once you've bought the blanco tequila of your choice, there are many delicious flavor combinations worth trying.

Some fruit juices you should be pairing with tequila and pouring into popsicle molds include apple, orange, strawberry, blackberry, and lime juice. For more tropical flavors, Derek Piva has some other ideas. "Pineapple, mango, or watermelon all pair beautifully with tequila. Pineapple adds tropical brightness, mango brings lush sweetness, and watermelon is wonderfully refreshing," he said. Watermelon margaritas rank highly among the 10 best cocktails to turn into popsicles this summer, so that might be an option worth trying. Seungcheol Baek has another recommendation. "Grapefruit juice with a splash of lime is fantastic —refreshing yet slightly bitter," he said. Baek also suggests enhancing blanco-infused popsicles with an aromatic ingredient, too. Infusing agave with fresh mint leaves can bring a nice herbaceous contrast to the pop.

Once you decide which ingredients you'd like to use, make sure to fill your popsicle molds with the right ratio of alcohol to juice. "Alcohol doesn't freeze solid, so keep your ratio around 4 parts juice to 1 part tequila. Too much tequila and you'll have slush instead of a pop," Piva said. For the best results, you can also chill your popsicle mixture in the refrigerator before freezing. "This method helps the popsicles set faster and keeps them consistent — similar to how we pre-chill our glassware for cocktails," Baek said. With all these tips in mind, you're well on your way to having perfectly spiked blanco tequila popsicles in no time.