Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on December 2010
Photo by James Hadfield
You know the drill: Friday night, several beers in any number of bars, kebab stains down the front of your shirt, a few more bars, and then someone suggests tequila shots all round. Brilliant idea! Keep ’em coming, barkeep!
Saturday morning: swear on all that is holy that you’ll never, ever touch a shot of tequila again.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Anyone who wants to appreciate Mexico’s national drink just needs to leave themselves in the hands of Marco Dominguez and start sampling the good stuff at Mayahuel, Roppongi’s newest tequila bar. The place only opened in September—the decor is in bright, primary colors and looks like it’s still wet—but it’s already attracting a dedicated following, thanks in part to Dominguez’s tequila and mezcal tasting sessions.
“Tequila should be 100 percent agave, and if you have a good drink with no sugar cane in it then you will not have a hangover,” he says. Sounds foolproof.
Like a sommelier, Dominguez teaches his informal “class” how a bottle of tequila should be rested for no longer than 18 months—otherwise it begins to change into a brandy and loses the taste of the agave—and that it needs to “breathe” when it first comes out of the bottle. Remarkably, if you hold a glass to your left shoulder and turn your head to smell it, the scent is different to when you hold it to your right—the brain is better able to detect the sweeter, chocolaty notes that way.
Dominguez’s advice is sound, but some habits are hard to break, so I dive in with Mayahuel’s bestselling brand, the full-bodied and slightly smoky Amanecer Ranchero Añejo (¥1,200). The El Fogonero Blanco Premium and La Cava Del Mayoral Blanco are both slightly harsher—and, at ¥600, probably closer to the stuff you’d normally knock back at 3am on a Friday night. Make sure to try the Reserva Del Señor Añejo and Ancestra Reposado (both ¥2,000) earlier in the evening, before your tastebuds start to suffer.
Tequila goes equally well in cocktails: the house favorite is the Paloma, with grapefruit juice and a dash of lime, while no menu would be complete without the Tequila Sunset and Sunrise (all ¥800). Mexican beers are also well represented; the TJ Beer Guera and Dos Equis SP Lager are both good, but we’re partial toward the Bohemia Classica (all ¥800). The pork, chicken and beef tacos (¥1,000) are also excellent, and while it may not be a traditional dessert south of the Rio Grande, the tequila ice cream (¥500) is a nice way to round out the eats.
Mayahuel is named after the goddess of fertility, considered particularly important in Mexican folklore at the time of the agave harvest. She may just have her work cut out keeping up with demand when word of this new bar spreads.
